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Gumming,  William  James,  184' 
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Shelf. The  Presbyterian  church 

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TJHEJ 


PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCH 


WITHIN    THE   FIELD   OF  "rtlE 


P/esbytery  of  Westchester, 

SYNOD  OF  NEW  YORK. 
1660-1889. 


By  WILLIAM   J.  GUMMING, 
Stated  Ci.erk. 


HARTFORD,   CONN.: 

Press  of  The  Case,  Lockvvood  &  Bkainard  Company. 
1889. 


PREFACE. 


THE  General  Assembly  of  1886  adopted,  on  the  recommenda- 
tion of  the  Permanent  Committee  of  Arrangements  for  the 
One  Hundredth  General  Assembly,  the  following : 

"  That  .  .  .  it  be  urged  on  all  Churches,  Presbyteries, 
and  Synods  ...  to  arrange  for  the  collection  and  publica- 
tion of  the  facts  of  their  history,  and  that  the  Presbyteries  and 
Synods  be  requested  ...  to  forward  two  copies  to  the 
Stated  Clerk  of  the  General  Assembly  and  to  the  Presbyterian 
Historical  Society,  respectively."  [Minutes  of  the  General 
Assembly,  1886,  p.  16.] 

The  preparation  of  a  history  of  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester 
was  undertaken,  at  their  request,  by  their  historian,  the  late  Rev. 
Charles  W.  Baird,  D.D.,  who  had  been  for  years  gathering  mate- 
rial for  a  "  History  of  the  Church  within  the  field  of  the  West- 
chester Presbytery."  A  few  weeks  later  he  finished  his  earthly 
course.  The  stated  clerk  was  elected  in  April,  1887,  to  fill  the 
vacancy.  To  him  it  seemed  best  simply  to  attempt  a  collection 
of  material  in  its  historical  connection.  It  has  been  his  aim  to 
make  the  work  as  complete  as  its  necessary  limitations  would 
permit,  to  secure  the  greatest  possible  accuracy,  and  to  render 
its  contents  available  by  serviceable  indices.  The  hope  that  no 
errors  will  be  found  is  not  to  be  entertained. 

The  entire  collection  of  historical  material,  made  by  the  late 
Dr.  Baird,  was  very  kindly  placed  at  his  disposal  by  Mrs.  Baird, 
for  which  he  desires  to  make  grateful  acknowledgment. 

The  following  list  gives  the  principal  sources  from  which  the 
facts  presented  in  this  work  have  been  gleaned : 

PRESBYTERIES. 

Minutes  of  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County,  i  vol.  (Presbytery  of 
Hudson.) 

The  Constitution  and  Records  of  the  Associated  Westchester  Presbytery, 
I  vol.     (Constant  White,  Esq.,  Yorktown,  N.  Y.) 


IV  PREFACE, 

Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  3  vols.  (Presbytery  of  West- 
chester.) 

Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  i  vol.  (Presbytery  of  West- 
chester.) 

Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester,  3  vols. 

The  Presbytery  of  New  York,  by  Rev.  Samuel  D.  Alexander,  D.D.,  18S8. 

The  History  of  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson,  by  Rev.  Henry  A.  Harlow,  18S8. 

Historical  Sketch  of  the  Presbytery  of  North  River,  by  Rev.  J.  K.  Wight, 
iSSi. 

CHURCHES. 
Bedford  (N.  Y.)  : 

A  Brief  History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  by  Rev.  P.  B.  Heroy,  1874. 

The   History  of  the   Bedford  Church,  by  Rev.  Charles  W.  Baird.  D.D., 
1S82. 
BETH.A.NY   (N.  Y.)  : 

A  Historical  Discourse,  by  Rev.  George  W.  F.  Birch,  D.D.,  1888. 
Bridgeport  First  (Conn.)  : 

'     Memorial  of  Rev.  Nathaniel  Hewit,  D.D.,  by  Rev.  Lyman  Atwater,  D.D  , 
1867. 
Deep  River  (Conn.)  : 

Records  (Ms.)  1856-1862.     (Presbytery  of  Westchester.) 
Greenburgh  (N.  Y.)  : 

A  Sermon,  by  Rev.  J.  L.  Howell,  i860. 

Manual,  1878. 
H.'\rtford  First  (Conn.)  : 

Historical  Address,  by  Rev.  J.  Aspinwall  Hodge,  D.D.,  18S6. 
Irvington  (N.  Y.)  : 

History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  1876. 
Mahopac  Falls  (N.  Y.)  : 

Historical  Sermon,  by  Rev.  Charles  C.  Wallace,  1878. 

Historical  Sermon  (Ms.),  by  Rev.  Harris  R.  Schenck,  1884. 
New  Haven  First  (Conn.),  Formerly  South  Reformed: 

Records  (Ms.),  1873-5.     (Presbytery  of  Westchester.) 
New  Rochelle  (N.  Y.)  : 

A  Historical  Sketch  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  by  Rev.  E.  R.  Burkhalter, 
1S76. 

Annual  Statement,  1888. 
Peekskill  First  (N.  Y.)  : 

Memorial  of  a  Twenty-Four  Years'  Pastorate,  1868. 

Semi-Centennial  Anniversary,  1876. 
Peekskill  Second  (N.  Y.)  : 

Manual,  1872. 
Rye  (N.  Y.)  : 

History  of  Rye,  by  Rev.  Charles  W.  Baird,  D.D.,  1871. 
South-East  Center  (N.  Y.)  : 

Historical  Sermon,  by  Rev.  A.  R.  Macoubrey,  1877. 
Stamford  First  (Conn.)  : 

Manual,  1869. 


PREFACE.  V 

Thompson viLLE  First  (Conn.): 

Historical  Discourse,  by  Rev.  Carson  W.  Adams,  1867. 

Memorial  of  Rev.  Joseph  Harvey,  D.D.,  by  Rev.  Henry  F.  Lee,  1873. 
YoNKERS  First  (N.  Y.): 

Manual,  1856. 

Manual,  1887. 
YoRKTOWN  (N.  Y.)  : 

Church  Records,  Hanover,  Nov.  15,  1786.  (Constant  White,  Esq.,  York- 
town,  N.  Y.) 

Historical  Sermon  with  Supi)lement,  by  Rev.  W.  J.  Cumming,  1877. 
White  Plains  (N.  Y.)  : 

A  Sermon,  by  Rev.  Edgar  L.  Hermance,  1884. 

MISCELLANEOUS. 

Historical  Notes  (Ms.)  collected  by  Rev.  Charles  W.  Baird,  D.D. 

Historical  Notes  (Ms.)  collected  by  Rev.  W.  J.  Cumming. 

Civil  Status  of  the  Presbyterians  in  the  Province  of  New  York,  by  Rev. 
Charles  W.  Baird,  D.D.     Afagazine  0/  American  History,  October,  1879. 

Sketch  of  the  Religious  Privileges  of  Van  Cortlandtville,  by  C.  A.  Pugsley, 
1881. 

Complete  History  of  Connecticut,  by  Benjamin  Trumbull,  D.D. 

History  of  Putnam  County,  N.  Y.,  by  W.  J.  Blake. 

History  of  Westchester  County,  N.  Y.,  by  J.  Thomas  Scharf,  A.M.,  LL.D., 
1886. 

Diary  of  Rev.  Silas  Constant  (Ms.)  (Constant  White,  Esq.,  Yorktown, 
N.  Y.) 

W.  J.  CUMMING. 
Yorktown,  N.  Y., 

Aug.  I,  1889. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 
The  Early  Churches  of  Westchester  and  Putnam  Counties,  N.  Y. 

The  Settlers,  i.  — The  Early  Churches,  4.  —  Houses  of  Worship,  5.  —  Ministe- 
rial Support,  9. 

CHAPTER    H. 
Ecclesiastical  Status  of  the  Early  Churches. 

Origin  of  the  Earlv  Churches,  12. —  Faith  and  Polity  of  the  Connecticut 
Churches,  12.  —  Synod  of  Saybrook  and  Saybrook  Platform,  13.  —  "Con- 
sociationism,"  14.  —  Polity  of  the  Early  Churches,  15.  —  Ecclesiastical 
Connection,  17.  —  List  of  Churches,  18. 

CHAPTER  in. 
Civil  Status  of  the  Early  Churches. 

Royal  Instructions  and  the  Duke's  Laws,  20. — The  Act  of  1693,  22.  —  Gov- 
ernor Fletcher's  Interpretation,  23.  —  Colonel  Heathcote,  24. —  Induction 
of  the  Missionaries  of  the  Gospel  Propagation  Society  into  the  Parishes  of 
Westchester  County,  25. —  Opposition  at  Bedford,  25.  —  The  Act  of  1705, 
explanatory  of  the  Act  of  1693,  26.  —  Effects  of  these  Acts  in  Westches- 
ter County,  27.  —  Efforts  towards  a  Repeal,  28.  —  Presbyterian  Churches 
unable  to  secure  Incorporation,  28. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County. 

Organization,  31.  —  Recognized  by  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadel- 
phia, 32.  —  Rolls,  33.  —  Meetings,  39.  —  Ministerial  Education,  39.  —  Mis- 
sionary Ojierations  and  Benevolent  Work,  40. 

CHAPTER  V. 
The  Preshytery  of  Dutchess  County  Continued. 
The  War  of  the  Revolution,  41.  —  The  Federal  Constitution,  47. 


Vlil  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

The  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County  Continued. 

Changes  in  the  Constitution  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  48. —  Causes  of  Dis- 
solution of  the  Presbytery,  51.  —  Stated  Clerks,  53. —  Biographical  Sketches, 

53- 

CHAPTER  VII. 

The  Associated  Westchester  Presbytery. 
Origin  of  the  Associated  Presbyteries,  58.  —  Organization  of  the  Associated 
Westchester  Presbytery,  62.  —  Constitution,  63.  —  Rolls,  64. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  Associated  Westchester  Presbytery  Continued. 

The  Division  at  Yorktown,  71.  —  Size  of  Presbytery,  79.  —  Theology  and 
Polity,  80.  —  Meetings,  81.  —  Mission  Work,  82.  —  Narratives,  82.  —  Cate- 
chisms, 83. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

The  Associated  Westchester  Presbytery  Continued. 
Charges   of  Heresy,  84.  —  Ecclesiastical    Connection,  85. —  Dissolution,  90. — 
Biographical  Sketches,  92. 

CHAPTER  X. 
The  Presbyteries  of  Hudson,  New  York,  and  North  River. 

The  Presbytery  of  Hudson,  95.  —  The  Presbytery  of  New  York,  96.  —  The 
Presbytery  of  North  River,  98.  —  List  of  Churches,  99. 

CHAPTER  XL 
The  Presbytery  of  Bedford. 
Erected,  102.  —  Rolls,  103. — Church  Extension,  112. 

CHAPTER  XIL 

The  Presbytery  of  Bedford  Continued. 

Revivals,  115. — Additions  and  Total  Communicants,  116.  —  Narratives,  117. 
—  Temperance,  117. —  Sunday  Milk  Traffic,  117.  —  Visitation,  118.  —  Sab- 
bath Schools,  119.  —  Collections,  120.  —  Trial  of  Rev.  Griffith  H.  Griffith, 
124. 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  Presbytery  of  Bedford  Continued. 

Reception  of  Ministers  and  Licentiates  from  Corresponding  Bodies  and  other 
Presbyteries,  128.  —  Testimony  against  the  New  Theology,  129. —  Loose 
Methods  of  receiving  Ministers,  130.  —  Committee-men  in  the  General 
Assembly,  130. — The  Act  and  Testimony,  131. —  General  A.ssembly  of 
1836,  132.  —  General  Assembly  of  1837,  135. 


CONTENTS.  IX 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

The  Preshytery  of  Bedford  Continued. 

Division  of  the  Somers  Church  and  Trial  of  Ebciiezcr  White,  M.D.,  137. — 
Division  at  Red  Mills,  138.  —  New  Rochelle  Church,  139.  —  Dissolution 
of  the  Presbytery,  141.  —  Permanent  Officers,  142. 

CHAPTER  XV. 

The  PREsnYTERY  OF  Connecticut. 

Erection,  143.  —  Rolls,  144.  —  Church  Extension,  147.  —  Enlargement  by  Trans- 
fer, 150.  —  Union  with  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  151.  —  Church  E.xten- 
sionof  the  united  Presbyteries,  151.  —  Attempted  Union  of  Churches,  152. 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

The  Presrytery  of  Connecticut  Continued. 

Spiritual  Life,  154.  —  Statistical  Reports,  155.  —  Reunion  of  1S69,  158. — The 
State  of  the  Country,  160.  —  Permanent  Olificers,  163. 

CHAPTER  XVII. 
The  Preshytery   of  Westchester. 
Erection,  164. —  Presbyteries  formerly  in  the  Field,  164  — Rolls,  165. 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

The  Preskytery  of  Westchester  Continued. 

Church  Extension,  179 — Losses,  182. —  Spiritual  Life,  i S3.  —  Statistical  Re- 
ports, 184.  —  Women's  Missionary  Societies,  186. —  Changes  in  the  Con- 
stitution, 187.  —  Death  of  President  Garfield,  192.  —  Abstracts  and  Printed 
Minutes,  192.  —  Incorporation,  192.  —  Permanent  Officers,  193. 


APPENDIX. 

Indices. 

Index  of  Dates,  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  •       '95 

General  Index,  ........       203 


CHAPTER  I. 


The  Early  CJinrchcs  of   Westchester  and  Putnam 
Counties,  N,  V. 

F'OR  the  beginning  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  within 
the  field  of  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester,  we  must 
look  to  Westchester  and  Putnam  Counties,  N.  Y.,  and  to 
their  earliest  settlement.  Three  distinct  streams  of  immi- 
gration flowed  into  these  counties  in  the  17th  century,  and 
through  three  different  channels  —  the  Hudson,  Long  Island 
Sound,  and  the  Indian  paths. 

The  Hollander  came  first  and  pushed  his  way  northward 
along  New  York's  great  river,  and  founded  settlements  upon 
its  banks.  Purchases  of  land  from  the  Indians  were  made 
as  early  as  Aug.  3,  1639.  By  1697,  the  entire  river  front 
was  embraced  in  the  manors  of  Van  Cortlandt  and  Philips- 
burgh,  and  the  "  Ryck's  Patent."  There  seem  to  have  been 
Dutch  settlers  at  Tarry  town  by  1641.  It  is  believed  that  in- 
terments were  made  in  the  Old  Dutch  Churchyard  at  that 
place  between  1645  and  1655  ;  without  doubt  there  was  a 
saw-mill  at  Yonkers  as  early  as  1649,  and  settlers  at  Ver- 
planck's  Point  by  1685.  Between  1685  and  1690,  the  old 
Dutch  church  was  built  at  Tarrytown. 

The  English  came  next.  They  founded  Hartford  in  1636, 
and  New  Haven  in  1638.  The  Sound  gave  to  the  latter 
colony  ready  access  to  Long  Island,  and  easy  and  safe  com- 
munication with  regions  to  the  west.  Villages  sprang 
up  in  rapid  succession  in  both  quarters.  Land  was  acquired 
in  large  blocks  with  indefinite  boundaries  from  the  Indians 
by  purchase.  Typical  Yankee  enterprise  was  stimulated  by 
the  Dutch  claim  to  territory  extending  as  far  eastward  as 


2  WESTCHESTER    AND    PUTNAM    COUNTIES,    N.  Y. 

the  Connecticut  River.  April  2,  1655,  Thomas  Pell  of  Fair- 
field, Conn.,  laid  claim  to  what  is  now  called  Westchester, 
under  an  Indian  conveyance  of  Nov.  14,  1654.  Shortly  after 
the  tract  was  settled  from  New  England.  Jan.  3,  1660,  the 
first  purchase  was  made  by  residents  of  Greenwich,  Conn., 
of  land  in  the  vicinity  of  Rye.  In  July  or  August  follow- 
ing, actual  settlement  probably  took  place. 

Four  years  later  ten  families  from  Fairfield,  Conn.,  under 
the  auspices  of  Thomas  Pell,  who  had  been  the  leader  in  the 
migration  to  Westchester,  located  in  the  neighboring  East- 
chester.  Most  of  the  land  along  the  Sound  and  the  East 
River  having  been  taken  up,  the  colonists  pushed  into  the 
interior  by  the  Indian  paths.  Twenty-four  men,  with  their 
families,  from  Stamford,  Conn.,  in  March,  168 1,  settled  upon 
the  cultivated  lands  of  the  Indians  at  what  is  now  Bed- 
ford. These  had  been  secured  from  the  natives  by  purchase, 
Dec.  23,  1680,  for  ;^38  I5.y.  The  inhabitants  of  Rye  had 
taken  as  they  supposed,  title  to  the  White  Plains,  Nov.  22, 
1683.  Settlement  was  retarded,  however,  until  about  1720, 
by  the  conflicting  Richbell  Patent.  Thence  immigration 
pushed  rapidly  through  North  Castle  to  the  western  and 
central  portion  of  the  Manor  of  Van  Cortlandt,  to  what  is 
now  called  Cortlandt,  Yorktown,  and  Somers.  By  1730  a 
sprinkling  of  settlers  had  occupied  most  of  the  cultiv^ated 
lands  of  the  Indians,  and  by  1750,  the  entire  manor  had  be- 
come populated.  The  names  of  the  settlers  reveal  that  many 
of  them  came  from  Rye,  New  Rochelle,  and  Eastch ester  ; 
others  were  from  Long  Island,  Harrison's  Purchase,  and 
Ridgefield. 

May  30,  1708,  with  the  permission  of  the  General  Assem- 
bly of  Connecticut,  certain  residents  of  Norwalk,  Fairfield 
County,  and  Milford,  New  Haven  County,  among  whom  were 
some  bearing  the  familiar  names  of  Keeler,  Bouton,  and 
Whitney,  purchased  of  the  Indians  a  large  tract,  afterwards 
known  as  the  Ridgefield  Pfitent.  The  condition  imposed 
was  that  settlement  should  be  effected  within  four  years. 
It  is  presumed  that  this  was  done,  as  letters  patent  were 


PHILIPSE    PATENT.  3 

granted  to  the  same  parties  May  22,  17 14.  The  boundary 
survey  of  1731  showed  that  50,000  acres  of  this  tract  lay  in 
the  "  Oblong  "  or  "  Equivalent  Lands,"  as  they  were  called 
at  the  time,  which  by  agreement  between  the  authorities  of 
the  Colony  of  Connecticut  and  the  Province  of  New  York, 
made  in  Nov.  1683,  were  awarded  to  the  latter  as  an  offset 
to  the  loss  of  the  towns  of  Greenwich,  Stamford,  Darien, 
Norwalk,  New  Canaan,  and  a  part  of  Wilton. 

By  1730  settlers  from  Connecticut  had  entered  Philipse 
Patent,  now  Putnam  County,  and  established  for  themselves 
homes  in  the  present  town  of  South  East.  Ten  years  later 
(1740),  civilization  had  found  its  way  to  Carmel,  and  in  1745 
families  of  Scotch  extraction  located  at  Patterson.  It  was 
not  until  1743  that  Pound  Ridge  was  occupied  by  the  white 
man  and  its  soil  laid  under  tribute.  A  few  families  from 
Stamford  made  the  first  settlement. 

After  the  Dutch  and  English  came  the  Huguenot.  The 
revocation  of  the  lulict  of  Nantes  in  1685  drove  them  from 
their  native  land.  A  goodly  number  of  them  arrived  in 
1686  or  7 ;  the  largest  contingent  landed  at  Bonnefoy's  Point 
in  1689.  They  settled  on  a  portion  of  tlic  Pelham  Manor, 
6,000  acres  in  extent,  purchased  by  Jacob  Leisler  from  John 
Pell ;  their  descendants  are  found  in  all  portions  of  the 
county. 

It  has  not  been  our  purpose  to  sketch  fully  the  history 
of  the  settlement.  Many  points  of  interest  have  not  been 
touched,  and  ]:)ortions  of  the  territory  have  received  no 
attention.  We  have  only  attempted  an  outline  by  way  of 
preparation  for  what  is  to  follow. 

The  Puritan  and  the  Huguenot  sought  the  western  con- 
tinent for  conscience  sake.  The  Hollander,  though  coming 
for  a  different  purpose,  brought  with  him  both  preacher  and 
teacher.  The  descrijition  given  of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers  by 
their  minister  and  elder  fairly  well  represents  tliem  all  : 
"We  are  all  well  weaned  from  the  delicate  milk  of  our 
mother  country  and  inured  to  the  difficulties  of  a  strange 
land  ;  the  people  are  industrious  and  frugal.      We  are  knit 


4  WESTCHESTER    AND    PUTNAM    COUNTIES,    N.  Y. 

together  as  a  body  in  a  most  sacred  covenant  of  the  Lord, 
of  the  violation  whereof  we  make  great  conscience,  and  by 
virtue  whereof  we  hold  ourselves  straitly  tied  to  all  care  of 
each  other's  good,  and  of  the  whole.  It  is  not  with  us  as 
with  men  whom  small  things  can  discourage."  The  Dutch, 
French,  and  English  were  for  the  most  part  Calvinistic  in 
theology,  and  Presbyterian  or  .Independent  in  polity. 
Among  the  latter  were  a  few  Baptists,  many  Friends,  and  a 
sprinkling  of  the  Church  of  England.  We  are  fully  aware 
that  the  charge  has  been  made  against  the  people  by  the 
missionaries  of  the  Gospel  Propagation  Society  and  even  by 
Col.  Heathcote  that  they  were  irreligious.  The  latter  says 
that  "  many,  if  not  the  greater  part  of  them,"  were  "  a  little 
better  than  in  a  state  of  heathenism."  He  also  writes  — 
"When  I  first  came  among  them  (1692),  I  found  it  (West- 
chester) the  most  heathenish  county  I  ever  saw  in  my  whole 
life,  which  called  themselves  Christian,  there  being  not  so 
much  as  the  least  marks  or  footsteps  of  religion  of  any  sort, 
Sunday  being  the  only  time  set  apart  by  them  for  all  manner 
of  vain  sports  and  lewd  diversions."  Heathcote  had  a  rem- 
edy for  this  fearful  condition  of  irreligion.  We  give  his 
own  words — "  Having  the  command  of  the  militia,  I  sent 
an  order  to  all  the  captains,  requiring  them  to  call  their  men 
under  arms,  and  to  acquaint  them,  in  case  they  would  not 
in  every  town  agree  among  themselves  to  appoint  readers 
and  pass  the  Sabbath  in  the  best  manner  they  could,  till  such 
times  as  they  could  be  better  provided,  that  they  should 
every  Sunday  call  their  companions  under  arms  and  spend  the 
day  in  exercise."  This  may  have  been  true  of  some  localities, 
but  that  it  represents  the  condition  of  the  people  at  large 
is  not  borne  out  by  the  facts.  It  is  to  be  remembered  that 
these  critics  were  zealous  members  of  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, who  were  prejudiced  against  dissenters.  The  good 
Colonel's  metliod  may  have  been  used  in  favor  of  the  church 
to  which  he  belonged. 

From  the  very  outset  the  people  of  each  settlement  had 
it  in  mind  to  gather  themselves  into  a  church,  erect  a  house 


THE    DUKE  S    LAWS.  5 

of  worship,  and  call  a  minister  as  soon  as  possible.  To  this 
they  were  incited  by  the  laws  of  Connecticut,  to  which  col- 
ony some  of  the  plantations  originally  belonged.  The  Gen- 
eral Court  looked  very  carefully  after  the  religious  interests 
of  the  colonists  within  its  jurisdiction.  It  chides  the  Rye 
people  for  not  taking  "due  care  to  procure  such  an  one  as 
might  carry  on  the  work  of  the  Lord  on  the  Sabbath.  May 
19,  1 68 1,  it  directed  the  committee  appointed  to  look  after 
the  affairs  of  the  "plantation  upon  the  Hopp  Ground  and 
adjacent  lands  [Bedford]  ...  to  take  care  that  there  be  a 
suitable  lott  layd  out  for  the  first  minister  of  the  place,  and 
a  lott  for  the  ministry,  to  be  and  belong  to  tlie  ministry  for- 
ever." In  the  province  of  New  York  the  Duke's  Laws, 
framed  from  the  laws  then  in  force  in  New  England,  made 
provision  by  taxation  for  the  building  and  repair  of  churches, 
the  care  of  the  poor,  and  the  maintenance  of  the  ministry. 
In  1662,  two  years  after  the  purchase  and  settlement  of 
Rye,  the  people  set  apart  three  acres  on  Parson's  Point  for 
the  minister's  use.  To  this  more  was  added  later.  The 
Bedford  people  as  soon  as  they  were  on  the  ground,  March 
21,  168 1,  resolved  that  "the  town  common"  sho.uld  be  re- 
served, "  and  the  meeting-house  should  be  set  upon  the  com- 
mon so  layd  out,  namely  the  rock  called  Bates  his  hill." 
Provision  was  made  later  for  the  minister  by  setting  apart 
land  for  his  use  or  by  gift. 

The  deed  by  which  John  Pell  and  Rachel,  his  wife,  con- 
vey to  Jacob  Leisler  6,000  acres,  in  what  is  now  New 
Rochelle,  for  the  Huguenots,  mentions  a  gift  of  100  acres 
"for  the  French  Church  erected  or  to  be  erected."  Other 
settlements  were  not  less  earnest  in  making  provision  for 
religious  service  —  Eastchester  by  1665,  Westchester  1674, 
White  Plains  1727,  Yorktown  1738,  South  East  1735,  South 
Salem  175 1,  Gilead  1756,  Patterson  1759,  l^ound  Ridge 
1760,  North  Salem  1764,  Sing  Sing  1768,  and  Red  Mills 
(Mahopac  Falls)  1784. 

The  settlements  were  not  always  able  to  provide  a  build- 
ing or  secure  a  minister  at  once.     Rye  had  no  completed 


6  THE    EARLY    CHURCHES. 

church  edifice  for  sixty-seven  years  and  no  settled  minister 
for  seventeen  years.  Westchester  waited  nearly  twenty 
years  for  both.  Yorktown  was  without  a  house  of  worship 
for  eight  and  stated  preaching  for  thirteen  or  more.  Others 
again  were  more  fortunate.  Bedford  had  a  pastor  in  three 
years  and  a  church  in  ten.  South  East  could  boast  a  log 
house  of  worship  in  1735,  five  years  after  the  coming  of  the 
first  settlers,  and  a  minister  by  1740. 

Such  facts  do  not  indicate  that  during  these  years  the 
people  were  destitute  of  religious  privileges.  Services  were 
held,  when  there  was  no  pastor,  consisting  of  prayer  and  the 
reading  of  the  Scriptures  and  of  a  sermon.  We  have  an 
account  of  one,  witnessed  by  the  Dutch  Commissioners  at 
Westchester,  as  early  as  1656.  "Mr.  Baly  made  a  prayer 
and  Mr.  Bassett  read  a  sermon."  It  was  probably  at  such 
meetings  at  Rye  in  1669,  that  John  Coe  and  Marmaduke 
Smith,  who  were  represented  to  the  General  Court  of  Con- 
necticut "as  unsound  and  heterodox  in  their  judgments,  if 
not  scandalous  in  their  lives,"  taught.  The  Bedford  people 
offered,  October  15,  1689,  to  erect  a  frame  house  of  worship, 
if  Mr.  Abraham  Ambler,  Sr.  of  Stamford,  would  come  up 
as  often  as  he  could  conveniently  to  carry  on  the  Lord's  day 
services.  In  1692,  at  Eastchester,  Samuel  Casting  was 
chosen  "  to  read  the  bibell  and  other  good  sermon-books, 
and  so  carion  the  sabath  days  Exercises  as  according  to  our 
Honorable  Col.  Heathcuts  order  unto  us,"  for  which  he  was 
to  receive  a  certain  compensation  contributed  by  the  people. 

Bedford  belonged  to  the  parish  of  Stamford,  twelve  njiles 
distant.  Rye  was  only  six  miles  from  Greenwich.  South 
Salem  was  at  first  included  in  the  Ridgefield  Patent. 
Doubtless  the  ministers  of  the  older  churches,  from  which 
the  settlers  came,  for  the  time  being  retained  the  spiritual 
oversight  of  their  old  parishioners.  On  special  occasions,  as 
Fast  Day,  Thanksgiving  Day,  and  Sacrament  Sabbath,  the 
inhabitants  of  the  new  plantations  would  find  their  way  back 
to  the  mother  churches.  Certainly  after  the  Revolution, 
because  they  had  neither  minister  nor  house    of   worship, 


CHURCHES    OF    NEW    YORK.  7 

some  of  the  residents  of  Rye  were  attendants  of  the  Second 
Congregational  Church  at  Greenwich.  Their  fathers  may 
have  done  the  same  a  century  eadier.  The  Huguenots  of 
New  Rochelle,  according  to  tradition,  in  the  early  days  when 
without  a  pastor,  would  set  out  on  Communion  Sundays  at  a 
very  early  hour,  walk  to  the  old  French  church  at  Pine 
Street,  New  York  City,  a  distance  of  twenty  miles,  and  re- 
turn again  the  same  day.  We  have  the  same  authority  for 
the  statement  that  some  of  the  residents  of  Yorktown 
attended  services  occasionally  at  White  Plains  (twenty  miles). 

The  vitality  of  the  religious  instincts  of  the  early  settlers 
and  the  success  that  attended  their  efforts  to  establish  the 
worship  of  God  is  shown  by  the  existence  of  a  religious  ser- 
vice, and  some  form  of  church  organization  in  all  the  settle- 
ments in  this  county  in  1700.  At  that  date  in  the  province 
of  New  York,  there  were  thirty-six  churches  —  fifteen  Dutch 
Reformed,  four  French  Reformed,  one  German  Reformed, 
thirteen  English  Presbyterian,  two  German  Lutheran,  and 
one  Church  of  England.  Of  these  we  are  concerned  with 
but  five  —  the  Huguenot  at  New  Rochelle,  and  the  churches 
at  Rye,  Bedford,  Westchester,  and  Eastchester.  By  October, 
1762,  when  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  county  was  organized, 
these  five  had  become  nine,  situated  in  Westchester  and  that 
portion  of  Dutchess  county  now  known  as  Putnam  —  Rye, 
Bedford,  White  Plains,  South  East,  Yorktown,  Gilead,  South 
Salem,  Patterson,  and  New  Rochelle.  At  Eastchester  and 
Westchester  under  cover  of  the  Act  of  1693,  the  dissenters 
were  put  out  of  their  houses  of  worship  by  the  royal  Gover- 
nor, who  inducted  missionaries  of  the  Church  of  England. 

In  some  cases  one  or  more  out-stations  were  attached  to 
a  church,  where  preaching  services  and  prayer-meetings  were 
held  under  the  supervision  of  the  pastor  and  session.  York- 
town  had  two,  where,  later,  organizations  were  effected. 
Samuel  Sackct,  the  first  j^astor,  officiated  occasionally,  per- 
haps statedly,  at  Pcekskill  and  Red  Mills.  His  successor, 
Silas  Constant,  followed  his  example.  From  i7<S5-i79i  he 
preached  at  the  former  place  every  two  or  three  weeks,  but 


8  THE    EARLY    CHURCHES. 

later  apparently  less  frequently.  The  records  of  the  York- 
town  church  show  an  annual  subscription  from  1 787-1 802 
of  ^33,  6s.,  81/.  by  the  "  Peekskill  Trustees"  or  "  Peekskill 
Society."  At  first  the  meetings  were  held  in  private  houses  ; 
after  the  building  of  St.  Peter's  Church  at  the  old  village,  in 
it.  An  effort  seems  to  have  been  made  to  secure  it  for  a 
"Union  Church"  by  the  Presbyterians  in  1788.  By  July, 
1797,  a  "new  meeting-house"  had  been  erected  in  the  pres- 
ent village,  probably  upon  the  site  now  occupied  by  the 
First  Church.  Mr.  Constant  also  attended  to  the  religious 
needs  of  Red  Mills.  By  1784  a  house  of  worship  was  erected, 
which  was  followed  by  a  separate  church  organization  Sep- 
tember 12,  1790. 

In  1 788  a  Congregational  Church  was  gathered  in  Green- 
burgh,  at  what  is  now  known  as  Elmsford.  It  was  reorgan- 
ized June  18,  1825,  as  a  Presbyterian  Church,  and  received 
under  the  care  &f  the  Presbytery  of  New  York  October  nth 
following.  The  people  of  Stephentown,  now  Somers,  erected 
a  house  of  worship  on  the  Plain  in  1799.  September  7,  1806, 
it  was  <;alled  the  Union  Meeting-House,  and  a  society  was 
organized.  In  1808  the  church  became  known  as  "The 
Congregational  Church  of  Somers."  It  was  connected  with 
the  Associated  Westchester  Presbytery. 

Religious  services  in  the  early  settlements  were  held  in 
private  houses,  or  during  the  summer  months  in  the  open 
air.  At  Rye  the  people  met  for  worship  with  Timothy 
Knapp.*  Better  accommodations  were  early  provided.  A 
log  church  was  built  at  South  East  in  1735.  There  were 
houses  of  worship  in  the  towns  of  Eastchester  and  West- 
chester by  1700.  Before  1762  all  our  congregations  were 
housed  comfortably  for  the  day  for  the  most  part  in  framed 
structures,  better  than  the  homes  of  those  who  worshiped 
in  them.  A  church  edifice  was  built  near  Sing  Sing  to  ac- 
commodate the  Presbyterians  resident  in  that  section  in  1768. 

We  have  already  spoken  of  the  provision  made  by  the 
fathers  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  within  our  bounds  for 


*  Baird's  History  of  Rye,  p.  279. 


THE    SUPPORT    OF    THE    MINISTRY.  9 

the  worship  of  God.  Wc  come  now  to  speak  more  fully  of 
the  support  of  the  ministry.  Situated  as  the  early  settlers 
were  it  was  no  easy  duty  to  fulfil.  Their  own  expenses 
were  extraordinary,  and  their  resources  were  limited.  The 
first  years  after  their  coming  were  tht)se  of  hardship  and 
privation.  Log  houses  were  to  be  constructed,  the  cultivated 
lands  were  to  be  fenced,  the  forest  to  be  felled.  Preparation 
must  be  made  for  the  rigorous  northern  winter  with  which 
they  were  not  unfamiliar.  Their  time  was  fully  occupied, 
and  money  was  scarce.  Hardly  any  specie  was  in  circula- 
tion before  the  French  war  of  1745,  and  paper  money  was 
not  issued  in  Connecticut  until  1709.*  To  provide  for  a 
minister  according  to  our  present  method  was  out  of  the 
question.  It  is  a  matter  of  interest  to  learn  how  these  dififi- 
culties  were  met.  The  usual  method  was  the  setting  apart 
of  land  for  the  minister's  use.  The  amount  varied  from  a 
few  acres  to  a  good  sized  farm.  This  was  done  at  Rye,  Bed- 
ford, New  Rochelle,  Yorktown,  South  Salem,  and  Mahopac 
Falls.  There  are  instances  on  record  of  a  gift  of  land  to 
individual  ministers.  Thomas  Denham,  who  had  the  honor 
of  being  the  first  settled  minister  at  Rye,  and  later  at  Bed- 
ford, was  thus  provided  for  at  both  places,  and  was  also 
granted  proprietary  rights.  William  Tennent  received  from 
the  town  of  Bedford  more  than  three  hundred  acres  as  part 
compensation  for  his  services.!  In  addition  to  the  use  or 
gift  of  land  a  stipend  was  allowed  varying  with  the  places 
•and  times  from  ;!^io  to  ^^loo.  Two  different  methods  were 
employed  to  raise  it.  In  Connecticut  originally  the  inhabit- 
ants were  called  upon  to  "  set  down  "  what  they  were  willing 
to  give.  In  case  of  refusal  "to  pay  a  meet  proportion,"  pro- 
vision was  made  for  rating  "in  some  just  and  equal  way." 
This  rate  could,  if  withheld,  be  collected  by  the  civil  powers. :f 
Later  a  general  system  of  ta.xation  was  adopted.  In  those 
portions  of  Westchester  county,  which  were  under  the  juris- 


*Baird's  History  of  Bedford  Church,  p.  30,  foot  note. 

t  Baird's  History  of  Bedford  Church,  pp,  50-54, 

t  Baird's  History  of  Rye,  p.  283. 
2 


lO  THE    EARLY    CHURCHES. 

diction  of  Connecticut,  this  method  was  employed.  It  was 
enacted  in  the  Duke's  laws  of  1665  in  the  province  of  New 
York.  In  Rye  and  Bedford,  the  town  made  provision  for 
the  ministry,  and  we  have  the  record  of  the  action  taken. 
At  the  town  meeting  of  the  former  November  17,  1670,  a 
committee  was  chosen  to  secure  a  minister,  and  it  was  voted 
to  allow  "  two-pence  on  the  pound  for  the  maintenance  of  a 
minister  amongst  us  ;  that  is  to  say,  an  orthodox  minister."* 
In  May  of  the  following  year  (1671)  the  General  Court  ap- 
pointed a  committee  to  visit  Rye  in  the  matter  of  settling  a 
minister,  and  in  certain  contingencies  they  were  empowered 
to  find  the  man  and  "  insure  to  him  a  mayntenance  to  the 
value  of  forty  pounds  p''  annum,  which  the  treasurer,  by 
warrant  to  the  constable  of  sayd  Rye,  shall  order  the  gather- 
ing and  payment  thereof,  with  the  Country  Rate."!  In  Bed- 
ford all  the  temporalities  of  the  church  were  cared  for  at  the 
town  meeting.  Arrangements  for  the  carrying  on  the  church 
services,  the  calling  of  the  minister,  the  fixing  of  the  salary, 
the  erection  of  a  church  edifice,  the  obtaining  of  a  home  lot, 
and  the  construction  of  a  parsonage  were  attended  to  there. 
The  system  of  taxation  was  continued  until  the  Revolution, 
but  after  1704  or  5,  with  the  exception  of  a  brief  interval,  the 
rates  went  to  support  a  minister  of  the  Church  of  England. 
So  far  as  our  investigation  has  gone,  the  remaining  churches 
were  supported  from  their  origin  by  voluntary  contributions. 

A  few  examples  of  calls  with  compensation  promised 
may  not  be  amiss. 

"december  26,  1699  :  The  town  [Bedford]  by  a  maigor 
vote  doth  agre  to  give  unto  Joseph  Morgan  upon  his  com- 
ming  to  carry  on  ye  ministry  amongst  us,  seuerall  particklars 
as  followeth  for  his  settlement  : 

"  ily  to  give  him  all  yt  rit  of  land  e  medow  which  the 
Town  bought  of  Mr.  Amblere  e  of  his  son  John  upon  the  con- 
disions  of  his  comming  and  macking  his  abode  three  years 
with  us. 


*  Baird's  History  of  Rye,  p.  274. 

t  Public  Records  of  Connecticut,  vol.  ii,  pp.  142-3  (Baird's  Rye,  p.  274). 


A    CALL    FOR    A    PASTOR.  II 

"  2nly  To  build  him  a  house  two  story  high,  twenty- 
seven  foot  long  e  twenty  on  foots  wid  with  a  leantu  e  a 
chambar  chimbly,  the  condishans  that  if  Mr.  Morgan  liveth 
e  dyeth  with  us  the  house  shall  be  his  on  e  his  ayres  for 
euer,  e  othirwise  if  Mr.  Morgan  see  cause  upon  any  account 
to  leave  us,  he  shall  pay  to  the  town  the  ually  of  the  chardg 
yt  by  an  account  taken  thereof  shall  be  giuen. 

"  3ly  To  giue  him  for  maintainance  for  the  first  year 
.forty  pounds  in  good  currant  prouision  paye  and  jilant  and 
mannure  four  acres  of  Land. 

"4ly  To  maniage  for  years  following  and  till  ten  acres  of 
Land  for  winter  grain  —  the  produce  of  ye  same  for  him 
yerly  —  and  twenty  pounds  in  good  currant  prouission  paye 
and  more  hereafter  as  god  shall  inable  us  if  he  stands  in 
need  thereof  —  two  pounds  of  the  same  to  be  Delivered  at 
Stamford  or  horseneck,  if  he  Desires  it. 

"  5ly  To  cut  and  cart  to  his  Dore  all  his  fire  wood  from 
yeare  to  yeare. 

"61y  to  transport  him  and  his  family  to  bedford  or  to  be 
at  ye  charg  theire  of."* 

William  Tennent's  stipend  was  forty  pounds  per  annum. f 
Samuel  Sacket  was  called  to  Hanover  (now  Yorktown),  at  a 
salary  of  £6$,  parsonage  and  twenty-five  cords  of  wood.  J 
As  money  was  scarce  the  stipend  was  oftentimes  paid  in 
what  was  called  provision  pay,  which  was  rated  in  1703  at 
Bedford  as  follows — winter  wheat  at  4s.  6d.  per  bu.,  rye 
3.?.,  flax  6d.  a  lb.,  beef,  \\d.  a  lb.,  pork  2\d.  a  lb. 

At  the  organization  of  the  State  government  all  rates 
were  abolished,  and  since  then  the  churches  of  all  denomi- 
nations have  been  supported  by  voluntary  contributions. 
Gifts  of  land  arc  no  longer  made.  The  glebes  have  grown 
smaller  and  the  stipends  larger.  Provision  pay  is  now  a 
thing  of  the  past. 


*Heroy's  History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  at  Bedford,  pp.  6  and  7. 
t  Baird's  History  of  the  Bedford  Church,  p.  56. 
X  Historical  Sermon,  Yorktown,  p.  10. 


CHAPTER  II. 


Ecclesiastical  Status  of    the  Early  ChnrcJics. 

^"'HE  English  in  number  were  greatly  in  the  majority,  as 
compared  with  both  the  French  and  the  Dutch,  and  to 
them  we  are  indebted  for  all  the  early  Presbyterian  congre- 
gations save  one.  New  Rochelle,  which  is  the  child  of  the 
Reformed  Church  of  France.  The  English  came  from  Con- 
necticut and  its  plantations  on  Long  Island.  Their  religious 
views  were  those  of  the  places  from  which  they  had  migrated. 
The  religious  establishment  of  that  colony  was  their  church, 
and  that  church  they  sought  to  establish  in  their  new  homes. 
We  can  best  understand  the  nature  of  the  offshoot  by  an 
examination  of  the  parent  stock. 

The  inhabitants  of  Connecticut  in  1665,  according  to  the 
commissioners  of  Charles  II,  were  "for  the  most  part  .  . 
rigid  Presbyterians."  Gov.  Leete  writes,  July  15,  1680, 
"  Our  people  in  this  colony,  are  some  strict  Congregational 
men,  others  more  large  Congregational  men,  and  some  mod- 
erate Presbyterians  ;  and,  take  the  Congrcgationall  men  of 
both  sorts,  they  are  the  greatest  part  of  the  people  of  the 
colony."  The  Synod  of  Saybrook  (1708),  and  the  Platform 
which  they  drew  up,  seen  in  the  light  of  the  causes  which 
called  it  into  existence,  and  of  the  attendant  circumstances, 
seem  to  indicate  a  strong  Presbyterian  minority,  with  the 
balance  of  power  in  the  hands  of  the  moderate  Congrega- 
tionalists. 

The  doctrinal  belief  of  the  churches,  according  to  Dr. 
Trumbull,  the  historian  of  Connecticut,  was  Calvinistic  and 
their  polity  Congregational.  We  have  the  same  authority 
for  the  statement  that  "  during  the  term  of  about  seventy 


THE    SYNOD    OF    SAYRKOOK.  1 3 

years  from  the  settlement  of  Connecticut  [^636-1 706]  the 
Congregational  had  been  the  only  mode  of  worship."  At 
the  latter  date  the  state  of  the  churches,  we  are  told,  was 
lamentable  with  respect  to  general  order,  government,  and 
discipline.  Many  of  the  churches  ran  into  confusion  from 
want  of  a  more  general  and  energetic  government.  Councils 
lacked  the  power  to  relieve  the  aggrieved  or  restore  peace ; 
and  oftentimes  councils  were  called  against  councils.  It  was 
not  possible  to  bring  difficulties  to  a  final  issue. 

To  meet  these  difficulties  the  General  Court  of  the  col- 
ony, May  13,  1708,  summoned  a  Synod  to  meet  at  Saybrook. 
The  ministers  in  each  county,  with  the  messengers  from  the 
churches,  were  to  meet  on  the  last  Monday  of  June  "to  con- 
sider and  agree  upon  those  methods  and  rules  for  the  man- 
agement of  ecclesiastical  discipline,  which  by  them  shall  be 
judged  agreeable  and  conformable  to  the  word  of  God." 
They  were  also  to  appoint  two  delegates  to  the  Synod,  which 
was  to  compare  the  results  of  the  deliberations  and  draw  up 
a  form  of  ecclesiastical  discipline  and  report  to  the  Court  at 
New  Haven  in  October. 

The  Synod  recommended  the  adoption  of  the  Savoy  Con- 
fession, the  Heads  of  Agreement  "assented  to  by  the  united 
ministers,  formerly  called  Presbyterian  and  Congregational," 
and  fifteen  rules  for  the  administration  of  discipline.  Ac- 
cording to  these  rules  discipline  in  the  individual  church  was 
vested  in  the  elder  or  elders,  subject  to  the  consent  of  the 
brethren.  Pastors  and  churches  in  each  county  constituted 
one  or  more  consociations,  before  which  all  cases  of  scandal, 
occurring  within  their  bounds,  were  to  be  brought.  The 
judgment  of  the  consociation  was  to  be  final.  Refusal  to 
obey  such  decisions  on  part  of  pastor  or  church  was  to  be 
followed  by  the  sentence  of  non-communion.  The  teaching 
elders  in  each  county  constituted  an  association,  which  was 
to  meet  twice  each  year  for  consultation  and  the  determina- 
tion of  questions  of  common  interest.  In  it  was  vested  the 
power  of  e.xamination  and  recommendation  of  candidates 
and  the  summoning  of  councils  for  the  trial  of  their  own 
members. 


14      ECCLESIASTICAL    STATUS    OF    THE    EARLY    CHURCHES. 

"Though 'the  Council  were  unanimous  in  passing  the 
platform  of  discipline,  yet  they  were  not  all  of  one  opinion. 
Some  were  for  high  consociational  government,  and  in  their 
sentiments  nearly  Presbyterian ;  others  were  much  more 
moderate  and  rather  verging  on  Independency  ;  but  exceed- 
ingly desirous  of  keeping  the  unity  of  the  spirit  in  the  bond 
of  peace,  they  exercised  great  Christian  condescension  and 
amicableness  towards  each  other."  (Trumbull's  Complete 
History  of  Connecticut,  p.  487.)  The  Saybrook  Platform 
was  adopted  by  the  General  Court  and  became  the  religious 
constitution  of  the  colony.  Though  strenuously  opposed  by 
some  of   the  churches,  it  was  accepted  by  most. 

By  the  adoption  of  the  Saybrook  Platform  the  Savoy  Con- 
fession became  the  creed  of  the  churches.  According  to 
the  Heads  of  Agreement,  however,  the  doctrinal  portion  of 
the  Thirty-nine  Articles  of  the  Church  of  England  and 
the  Westminster  Confession  and  Catechisms  were  doctrinal 
equivalents.  The  Platform,  too,  established  "  consociation- 
ism  "  as  a  constituent  part  of  the  ecclesiastical  machinery 
for  the  government  and  discipline  of  the  churches.  "  The 
Consociation,"  according  to  Rule  IV  of  the  Litchfield  North 
Consociation,  "is  a  Standing  Council,  both  judicial  and  ad- 
visory, competent  to  ordain,  dismiss,  and  discipline  Pastors ; 
unite,  organize,  and  discipline  churches;  to  revise  the  decis- 
ions of  the  constituent  churches,  and  to  consult  their  general 
welfare."  Article  II,  Old  Consociation  of  Fairfield  County, 
asserts  the  power  of  the  Consociation  "authoritatively,  ju- 
ridically, and  decisively  to  determine  ecclesiastical  affairs."^ 
Opinion  on  this  subject  was  divided  in  the  colony.  Most  of 
the  churches  held  that  it  was  a  Presbytery,  while  a  minority 
esteemed  it  only  a  stated  Council.  "Dr.  Bellamy  (1744), 
held  that  a  church  receiving  the  Saybrook  Platform  departed 
from  Congregational  principles."  "  Consociationism  leads 
to  Presbyterianism  ;  Presbyterianism  to  Episcopacy  ;  Episco- 
pacy leads  to  Roman  Catholicism  ;  and  Roman  Catholicism 
is  an  ultimate  fact "  —  is  the  testimony  of    Dr.    Emmons. 


THE    POLITY    OF    THE    EARLY    CHURCHES.  1 5 

"  Scarce  any  are  ignorant  that  the  discipline  in  Connecticut 
verges  towards  Presbyterianism "  —  writes  John  Cotton  of 
Plymouth  (1772). 

We  have  a  very  conclusive  statement  from  the  Hartford 
North  Association  (1799),  to  the  effect  "that  the  constitu- 
tion of  the 'churches,  founded  on  the  common  usages  and 
Confession  of  Faith,  Heads  of  Agreement  and  Articles  of 
Church  Discipline,  adopted  at  the  earliest  period  of  the 
settlement  of  that  State,  is  not  Congregational,  but  contains 
the  essentials  of  the  government  of  the  Church  of  Scotland 
or  Presbyterian  Church  in  America,  particularly  as  it  gives 
a  decisive  power  to  ecclesiastical  councils  ;  and  a  Consocia- 
tion, consisting  of  ministers  and  messengers,  or  a  lay  repre- 
sentative from  the  churches,  is  possessed  of  substantially  the 
same  authority  as  a  Presbytery.  .  .  .  The  churches,  there- 
fore, in  Connecticut  at  large,  and  in  our  district  in  particular, 
are  not  now  and  never  were,  from  the  earliest  period  of  the 
settlement,  Congregational  Churches,  according  to  the  ideas 
and  forms  of  church  order  contained  in  the  Book  of  Disci- 
pline, called  the  Cambridge  Platform.  There  are,  however, 
scattered  over  the  state  ten  or  twelve  churches  [unconso- 
ciated],  which  are  properly  called  Congregational."  The 
polity  of  the  Connecticut  churches  in  the  eighteenth  century, 
therefore,  as  a  whole  was  a  compromise  between  Congrega- 
tionalism and  Presbyterianism. 

Our  early  churches  were  founded  by  Connecticut  Con- 
gregationalists  or  Presbyterians,  and  no  doubt  all  shades  of 
opinion  were  represented.  The  deed  to  the  land  upon 
which  the  Yorktown  church  stands,  which  stipulates  that  it 
is  for  the  use  of  a  Presbyterian  congregation  exercising 
worship  "according  to  the  form  of  worship  used  and  ex- 
ercised by  the  now  established  Presbyterian  Church  govern- 
ment in  that  part  of  Great  Britain  called  Scotland,  and  for 
no  other  purpose  or  intent  whatsoever,"  the  existence  of 
an  eldership  as  early  as  1763,  and  the  division  of  1806,  may 
indicate  the  presence  of  a  strong  Presbyterian  element. 
The   apparent  willingness  of   the   Salem    people    to  adopt 


1 6      ECCLESIASTICAL    STATUS    OF    THE    EARLY    CHURCHES. 

the  Presbyterian  polity  (Sept.  29,  1763)  looks  in  the  same 
direction. 

On  the  other  hand,  we  discover  apparently  strong  Con- 
gregational tendencies  in  the  churches  of  the  Philipse  Patent 
and  of  North  Salem.  The  Second  Church  (Patterson)  was 
without  a  bench  of  elders  until  1804,  the  First  Church  (South 
East)  until  1827,  North  Salem  until  1832,  and  the  West 
Congregation  (Gilead)  until  1835.  The  apparent  absence  of 
friction  in  most  of  our  churches  in  the  change  from  con- 
sociation to  Presbytery,  the  rapid  extension  of  the  Asso- 
ciated Presbyterian  movement,  and  the  return  again  to  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  bear  witness  to  the  presence  of  a  large 
number,  to  whom  either  denomination  was  acceptable.  The 
churches  of  Rye,  Bedford,  South  Salem,  South  East,  Pat- 
terson, and  Gilead  were  originally  connected  with  the  old 
consociation  of  Fairfield  County  and  later  with  the  Eastern 
Consociation  of  the  same  county.  Most  of  the  early  pastors 
were  from  that  colony.  Among  the  few  exceptions  were 
William  Tennent  and  Samuel  Sacket.  The  churches  to 
which  they  ministered  were  the  only  ones  with  ruling  elders 
prior  to  the  organization  of  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess 
County. 

Various  influences  were  at  work  to  bring  about  a  change 
in  ecclesiastical  connection.  The  settlement  of  the  boundary 
dispute,  which  politically  separated  the  English  settlers  in 
the  province  of  New  York  from  their  nearest  neighbors  on 
the  east,  the  fact  that  the  aflfiliated  churches  over  the  border 
belonged  to  an  establishment  from  which  they  were  neces- 
sarily cut  off,  the  influence  of  William  Tennent  and  Samuel 
Sacket,  who  were  members  of  Presbyteries,  of  Elisha  Kent, 
"who  favored  an  influential  and  decided  authority"  over  the 
churches,  of  Joseph  Peck,  a  graduate  of  Princeton,  of 
Solomon  Mead,  who  with  Kent  and  Peck  formed  the  Pres- 
bytery of  Dutchess  County,  and  of  John  Smith  who  had 
united  with  the  Presbytery  of  New  York,  the  strong  Pres- 
byterian sentiment  of  New  York  —  these  combined  effected 
the  slight  change  which  took  place. 


Change  of  ecclesiastical  connection.  17 

Through  Tenncnt,  undoubtedly,  the  church  at  Bedford 
became  at  least  indirectly  connected  with  the  Presbytery  of 
Philadelphia.  Samuel  Sacket  was  installed  in  1743  by  the 
Presbytery  of  New  Brunswick  over  the  churches  of  Crom- 
pond  (Yorktown)  and  Bedford.  Their  connection  with  that 
body  pj'obably  dates  from  that  year.  The  latter  became 
connected  with  the  Presbytery  of  Suffolk,  we  presume, 
when  Sacket,  its  pastor,  was  received  May  22,  175  i.  April 
4,  1753,  that  church,  possibly  dissatisfied  with  the  Pres- 
bytery's decision  as  to  its  obli.i;"ation  to  pay  Mr.  Sacket's 
salary,  though  he  had  chanj^ed  his  views  on  the  subject  of 
baptism,  requested  a  dismission  to  the  Western  Associa- 
tion of  Connecticut.  The  decision  was  postponed  and  the 
change  was  never  made.  Crompond  probably  came  under 
the  care  of  the  Presbytery  of  Suffolk,  when  Samuel  Sacket 
was  installed  pastor  by  that  body  about  1753.  In  1752  the 
churches  at  Rye  and  White  Plains,  through  their  pastor, 
John  Smith,  were  brought  into  connection  with  the  Pres- 
bytery of  New  York. 

At  this  time,  in  the  northern  portion  of  our  field,  the 
separation  of  the  churches  there  from  the  Connecticut 
churches  was  becoming  more  and  more  apparent.  They 
were  not  subject  to  the  same  laws,  and  their  connection 
with  consociation  was  only  nominal.  They  were  really,  in 
the  language  of  Elisha  Kent,  "under  no  ecclesiastical  judi- 
catory." The  separation  which  had  taken  place  was  simply 
recognized  when  the  Fairfield  East  Consociation  at  Danbury, 
Aug.  I,  1763,  ruled  out  of  the  council  the  pastors  and  dele- 
gates of  the  Philippi  (South  East)  and  West  Philippi 
(Gilead)  churches  because  they  had  no  right  tl>ere,  as  the 
consociation  "  was  designed  for  churches  in  the  colony  of 
Connecticut." 


1 8       ECCLESIASTICAL    STATUS    OF    THE    EARLY    CHURCHES. 


LIST    OF    CHURCHES. 


Name. 
I.  Rye 


Ecclesiastical  Connection. 


Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies.        Term  of  Service. 


Old    Consociation    of    Fairfield     Eliphalet  Jones, 


County,  Conn., 
Fairfield  East  Consociation, 
Pres'tery  of  New  York,  1752, 


Peter  Prudden, . 
Thomas  Denham, 
John  Woodbridge, 
Nathanael  Bowers, 
Stephen  Buckingham 
John  Walton,     . 
Edmund  Ward, 

John  Smith,  P.,  . 

2.  Bedford  — 

Old    Consociation    of    Fairfield  Thomas  Denham, 

County,  Conn.,  .         .  Joseph  Morgan,  P.,   . 

Pres.  of  I'hijadelphia,  1720,    .  John  Jones, 

Pres.  of  New  York,  1732,  .     .  William  Tennent,  *    . 

Pres.  of  New  Brunswick,  1743,  Henry  Baldwin, 

Presbytery  of  Suffolk,  1751,    .  Robert  Sturgeon 

Samuel  Sacket,  P.,    . 

Eliphalet  Ball,  P.,      . 

3.  White  Plains  — 

Old    Consociation    of    Fairfield     John  Walton,    . 
Coui)ty,  Conn.,         .         .     Edmund  Ward, 

Fairfield  East  Consociation,        .     John  Smith,  P., 

Presbytery  of  New  York,  1752. 

4   "Phillips  Precinct,"  ist,  Philippi  (South  East) — 
Fairfield  East  Consociation,       .     Elisha  Kent,  P., 

5.  Crompond,  Hanover,  (Yorktown)  — 

Pres.  of  New  Brunswick,  1743,     Sam'l  Sacket,  H.  M., 


Presbytery  of  Suffolk,  1753, 


Samuel  Sacket,  P.,    . 
James  Davenport  (?), 
Samuel  Sacket,  P.,    . 
Supp'd  by  Pres.  of  Suffolk 
Samuel  Sacket,  P.,    . 


1674 
1675 
1677-1684 
1684- 
1697-1700 
1720-1722 
1723-1728 
1728-1729 

S  Dec.30, 1742 

^  Feb.  26, 1 77 1 

I 684- I 689 
1 7 00- 1 702 
1702-1705 
1720-1727 

1727- 

173-- 
l  Oct.  12,  1743 

(  Apr.  4>i753 
j  Jan.  2,1754 
(  Dec.21,1768 

1723-172S 

1728-1729 

j  Dec.30, 1742 

I  Feb.26, 177 1 


3       1740- 

l  July  17,  1776 

\         1742- 
(  Oct.  12, 1743 
{  Oct.  12,  1743 
I  June  15, 1749 

'752-1753 
)  April,  1753 
(  April,    176c 

1760-1761 
(  Oct.,  1761 
(  June  5,  1784 


Ebenezer  Knibloe,  P., 


LIST    OF    CHURCHES.  19 

Name.  Ecclesiastical  Connection.  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies.        Term  of  Ser\'ice. 

6.  West  Phii.ippi,  "Gregory's  P.jlrish  "  (Gile.\d)  — 

Fairfield  East  Consociation,  .     James  Davenport,*    .         .        1752-1754 

\  Feb.17, 1756 
'  Aug.29,1759 
Elnathan  Gregory,  P.,        .  i76o-i77o(?) 

7.  "Phillii'S  Precinct,"  2D,  (Patterson)  — 

Fairfield  East  Consociation,  .     James  Davenport,  (? )      .        1752-1754 

loseiDhPeck   P  \Mar.29,i7s8 

Joseph  I  eck,  P.,         .  (Feb.  8,1769 

8.  Salem  (South  Salem)  — 

Fairfield  W.  Consociat'n,  1752,    Solomon  Mead,  P.,    .  L,  ^^     '    o 

'  Sept.  4,  1800 


*  West  Philippi  paid  only  one  third  o£  his  compensation.  Other  churches 
near  at  hand  doubtless  contributed  the  rest.  We  presume  that  they  were  Phil 
lips  Precinct,  2d,  and  Crompond.  Statement  is  based  on  letter  of  Mr.  Daven- 
port, dated  September,  1752. 


CHAPTER   III. 


TJie  Civil  Status  of  tJie  Early  CJinrches* 

CHARLES  II  instructed  his  commissioners  sent  out 
in  1664  to  "be  very  careful  .  .  .  that  nothing  be 
said  or  done  from  which  the  people  there  ma}'  think  that 
there  is  any  purpose  in  us  to  make  any  alteration  in  church 
government,  or  to  introduce  any  other  form  of  worship 
among  them  than  what  they  had  chosen."  The  "Duke's 
Laws"  promulgated  at  Hempstead,  March,  1665,  which 
were  founded  upon  the  laws  in  force  in  New  England,  re- 
quired that  any  minister  "desiring  to  officiate  within  the 
government  must  produce  credentials  from  some  Protestant 
bishop  or  ministers  within  some  part  of  his  Majesty's  domin- 
ions, or  the  dominions  of  any  foreign  prince  of  the  Re- 
formed religion."  f  Provision  was  also  made  for  the  build- 
ing and  repair  of  churches,  the  maintenance  of  the  ministry, 
and  the  relief  of  the  poor  by  taxation.  The  taxes  neces- 
sary for  these  purposes  were  to  be  levied  by  "  eight  of  the 
most  able  men  of  each  parish  called  '  overseers,'  chosen  by 
a  majority  of  the  householders."  These,  in  connection  with 
the  constable,  were  to  choose  two  of  their  number  to  be 
"church-wardens."  While  all  faiths,  except  the  Roman 
Catholic,  were  to  be  tolerated,  the  choice  of  the  minister  lay 
with  the  majority  of  the  householders.  From  Gov.  Andres 
we  learn  that  in  1678  the  towns  were  obliged  to  build 
churches  and  provide  for  the  ministry,  and  that  the  Pres- 

*  We  acknowledge  our  great  indebtedness  to  the  article  by  the  late  Kev. 
Charles  W.  Baird,  D.D.,  on  the  Civil  Status  of  the  Presbyterians  in  the 
Province  of  New  York,  in  the  Magazine  of  American  History,  October,  1879. 

t  Baird's  Civil  Status,  etc.,  p.  596. 


ROYAL    INSTRUCTIONS.  21 

byterians  and  Independents,  who  were  the  "  most  numerous 
and  substantial,"*  were  anxious  to  do  so. 

There  was  no  change  in  the  royal  instructions  until  Gov. 
Dongan  was  sent  out  in  1682.  In  addition  to  what  had 
been  charged  upon  his  predecessors,  he  was  also  enjoined 
to  take  especial  care  that  "the  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  as 
it  is  now  established,  [be]  read,  each  Sunday  and  Holyday 
and  the  Blessed  Sacrament  administered  according  to  the 
Rites  of  the  Church  of  England";  that  "noe  minister  be 
preferred    by    you   to    any    Ecclesiastical    Benefice  .     . 

without  a  certificate  from  ye  most  Reverend  the  Lord 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  of  his  being  conformable  to  ye 
Doctrine  and  Discipline  of  the  Church  of  England"  ;  "that 
Books  of  Homilys  and  Books  of  the  39  Articles  of  ye  said 
Church  of  England  bee  disposed  of  to  every  of  ye  said 
churches  and  that  they  bee  only  kept  and  used  therein  "  ; 
"  that  noe  schoolmaster  bee  henceforth  permitted  to  come 
from  England  &  to  keep  school  .  .  .  without  the  license 
of  the  said  Archbishop  of  Canterbury."  f  To  the  governor 
was  given  the  power  of  "  Collating  to  Benefices." 

The  impression  left  upon  our  minds  from  the  reading  of 
these  instructions  is  that  a  change  of  policy  was  intended, 
and  that  the  Establishment  of  England  was  to  be  imposed 
upon  the  province.  However,  Dongan  went  no  further  than 
to  see  to  it  that  the  Dukes  laws  were  carried  into  effect,  so 
that  each  town  should  do  their  duty  in  maintaining  a  minis- 
ter. The  people  up  to  this  time,  and  even  as  late  as  Lord 
Cornbury's  administration,  had  ministers  of  their  own  choice, 
and  no  complaint  was  made.  The  instructions  given  to 
Dongan  were  repeated  in  almost  identical  language  (with 
the  exception  that  the  Bishop  of  London's  name  is  substi- 
tuted for  that  of  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury)  to  the 
different  governors  by  William  and  Mary,  Anne,  George  I, 
George  II,  and  George  III. 


*  Baird's  History  of  Rye,  p.  288. 

t  Scharfs  Hist.  o£  West.  Co.,  Vol.  I,  p.  104. 


22  CIVIL    STATUS    OF    THE    EARLY    CHURCHES. 

Opinions  differ  as  to  the  significance  of  these  instruc- 
tions. Some  claim  that  it  hiy  in  the  royal  prerogative  to 
make  laws  for  the  colonies.  These  instructions,  in  their 
judgment,  were  "  binding  constitutions."  *  Lord  Mansfield 
and  Blackstone  are  cited  to  that  effect.  The  granting  of 
the  Colonial  Assembly  is  given  as  an  instance  of  the  exer- 
cise of  this  right  by  William  and  Mary.  It  is  affirmed 
that  the  "Act  of  Uniformity"  of  Charles  II,  and  that  of 
"  Toleration  "  of  William  and  Mary,  applied  to  all  the  sub- 
jects of  the  realm.  The  king,  they  believe,  is  bound  by 
his  coronation  oath  to  maintain  the  Established  Church 
throughout  his  dominions.!  Others,  again,  deny  each  one 
of  these  allegations.  They  vest  all  legislative  authority  in 
the  Parliament ;  Blackstone  and  West  are  cited  against  the 
extension  of  the  acts  of  Uniformity  and  Toleration  to  this 
country.  J  The  instructions  of  Charles  II  and  James  II,  and 
the  commission  of  George  II,  given  in  1728  to  the  Bishop 
of  London,  which  confines  his  spiritual  jurisdiction  in  the 
American  colonies  to  the  churches  where  divine  worship  is 
held  according  to  the  rites  of  the  Church  of  England,  in 
their  judgment,  indicate  a  purpose  not  to  interfere  with  the 
existing  churches. §  The  offices  established  by  the  Duke's 
Laws,  the  instructions  given  to  the  governors,  the  claims 
made  by  those  officials,  the  pretensions  of  the  missionaries 
of  the  Gospel  Propagation  Society,  look  in  the  direction  of 
an  Establishment.  While  we  may  not  be  able  to  discern 
the  royal  motives  nor  settle  even  to  our  own  satisfaction 
questions  of  English  law,  we  are  able  to  trace  the  conse- 
quences of  the  instructions  given. 

The  suggestion  for  the  passage  of  an  act  by  the  General 
Assembly  for  the  suitable  maintenance  of  a  minister  in  every 
town  came  from  Gov.  Sloughter  in  1691.  It  was  not,  how- 
ever, until    1693,  when  Gov.    Fletcher  was  chief  magistrate, 


*  Scharf's  Hist,  of  West.  Co.,  Vol.  I,  p.  106. 
t  Scharf's  Hist,  of  West.  Co.,  Vol.  I,  p.  106. 
J  Baird's  Civil  Status,  etc.,  pp.  612  and  624. 
§  Baird's  Civil  Status,  pp.  612-614. 


VESTRYMEN    AND    CHURCH    WARDENS.  23 

and  on  his  recommendation,  that  ''An  Act  for  Settling-  a 
Ministry  and  Raising  a  ]\Iaintcnance  for  them  in  the  city  of 
Neiv  York,  County  of  Richmond,  Westchester,  and  Queens 
County,  zvas  passed."  It  provided  that  within  a  year  at  the 
places  named  in  the  act  "a  good,  sufficient  Protestant  Minis- 
ter" should  be  called.  Westchester  County  was  divided  into 
two  pari.shes,  one  to  include  Westchester,  Eastchcster,  Yon- 
kers,  and  Pelham,  and  the  other  Rye,  Mamaroneck,  and  Bed- 
ford. To  each  was  to  be  assigned  a  minister.  The  stipend 
was  fixed  at  ^^50,  to  be  raised  by  taxation.  The  freeholders 
were  to  choose  annually  ten  vestrymen  and  the  vestrymen 
two  church  wardens,  by  whom  conjointly  the  ministers  were 
to  be  called.  The  former,  in  conjunction  with  the  justices 
of  the  peace,  were  to  le\y  the  taxes  for  the  suj3])ort  of  the 
minister  and  the  relief  of  the  poor.  All  former  agreements 
with  ministers  were  to  remain  in  force. 

Fletcher  sought  in  vain  for  the  insertion  of  a  clause 
granting  to  the  Governor  the  right  of  inducting  ministers. 
According  to  Lewis  Morris,  afterwards  Chief  Justice,  the 
Assembly  meant  by  the  expression  "a  good,  sufficient  Pro- 
testant Minister"  a  dissenter.*  This  was  the  inter]Dretation 
of  the  people,  who  nominally  conformed  to  the  requirements 
of  the  law.  At  Rye  and  W'estchester  we  find  that  the 
olBcers  called  for  in  due  time  were  elected.  It  was  not, 
however,  until  the  year  1695,  when  the  vestry  of  New 
York  called  a  dissenting  minister  that  any  official  interpre- 
tation of  the  act  was  given.  Fletcher  held  that  since  "  no 
Protestant  Church  admits  of  such  officers  as  Church  Wardens 
and  Vestrymen  but  the  Church  of  England,"!  therefore  the 
minister  must  be  of  that  persuasion.  The  Assembly  of  this 
year  declared  "that  the  Vestrymen  and  Church  Wardens 
have  power  to  call  a  Protestant  Dissenting  Minister,  and 
that  he  is  to  be  paid  and  maintained  according  as  the  Act 
directs. "J 


*  Baird's  Civil  Status,  etc.,  p.  597. 
t  Baird's  Civil  Status,  i)p.  596-7. 
X  Baird's  History  of  Rye,  p.  292. 


24  CIVIL    STATUS    OF    THE    EARLY    CHURCHES. 

In  1692  there  came  from  England  a  man  who  was  to 
play  an  important  part  in  the  ecclesiastical  troubles  of  West- 
chester. This  was  Col.  Caleb  Heathcote.  *  He  settled  at 
Mamaroneck  and  became  lord  of  the  Manor  of  Scarsdale. 
At  this  time,  according  to  his  own  statement,  there  were 
"  scarce  six  in  the  whole  county  who  so  much  as  inclined  to 
the  church."  f  He  was  soon  elected  church  warden  in 
both  parishes,  in  one  of  them,  so  he  writes,  to  secure  his 
influence  with  the  Governor  in  favor  of  Warham  Mather. 
He  refused  to  do  this  on  the  ground  that  that  official  could 
not  induct  a  dissenter.  He  proposed,  however,  a  compromise. 
The  parish  was  a  large  one  and  could  support  two  ministers. 
He  advised  that  a  French  Protestant  minister,  Mr.  Boudet, 
who  had  been  ordained  by  the  Bishop  of  London,  should  be 
called  to  the  living  and  maintained  as  provided  by  the  Act 
of  1693  ;  Mr.  Mather  was  to  remain  and  his  support  provided 
for  by  voluntary  contributions.  To  this  the  vestry  agreed 
but  afterwards  withdrew  their  consent,  as  Heathcote  believed, 
through  the  influence  of  Mather.  He  then  made  it  his  bus- 
iness "to  devise  ways  to  gett  him  out  of  the  country."  He 
seems  to  have  succeeded  in  the  course  of  a  few  years  (1701).$ 
He  evidently  believed  that  the  Church  of  England  had  been 
established  here  by  law,  and,  he  admits,  it  was  his  purpose 
to  bring  the  people  over  to  the  church."  Mr.  Boudet  was 
settled  over  the  Huguenot  Church  at  New  Rochelle  and 
went  with  those  who  seceded  to  the  Church  of  England  in 
1710.  § 

The  churches  of  Eastchester  and  Bedford  'about  the  be- 
ginning of  1700,  called  Joseph  Morgan  and  asked  consent  of 
the  Governor  to  his  induction.  This  was  refused.  These 
towns  then  sought  to  be  relieved  from  the  operation  of  the 
act,  in  order  that  they  might  have  a  ministry  of  their  own 
choice.     The  General  Assembly   showed  their  willingness, 


*Scharf's  History  of  West.  Co.,  vol.  I,  p.  472  f/  and  472^. 
t  .Scharf's  History  of  West.  Co.,  Vol.  I,  pp.  472^/  and  472  e. 
\  Scharf's  History  of  West.  Co.,  Vol.  I,  p.  810. 
§  Scharf's  History  of  West.  Co.,  Vol.  I,  p.  693. 


MISSIONARIES    OF    THE    GOSPEL    PROPAGATION    SOCIETY.       25 

at  least  so  far  as  Eastchester  was  concerned,  by  passing  an 
act  making  it  a  separate  parisli.  It  was  not,  however, 
approved  by  the  house  government.* 

Col.  Heathcote  seems  to  have  had  much  to  do  with  the 
coming  of  the  missionaries  of  the  Gospel  Propagation 
Society  to  Westchester  County.  Joseph  Morgan  was  at 
Eastchester  when  John  Bartow,  who  had  recently  come  from 
England,  was  inducted  into  the  parish  of  Eastchester,  West- 
chester, Yonkers,  and  Pel  ham  by  Lord  Cornbury,  Nov.  19, 
1702.  At  this  time  Westchester  was  without  a  pastor. 
April,  1704,  Thomas  Pritchard  was  made  rector  of  the  parish 
of  Rye,  Mamaroncck,  and  Bedford.  A  few  months  later  he 
was  recalled,  and  in  1705  George  Muirson  took  his  place. 
Most,  if  not  all,  of  the  churches  of  these  parishes  were  used 
for  the  services  of  the  Church  of  England. 

There  is  abundant  evidence  of  dissatisfaction  among  the 
people.  Bartow  writes  that  the  means  employed  at  East- 
chester to  prevent  and  disturb  his  settlement  were  frustrated 
by  Lord  Cornbury.  He  complains  later  of  the  burden  of 
planting  the  established  church  "amongst  prejudiced,  poor, 
and  irreligious  people."  The  vestr\'  in  some  parishes  in  the 
province  declined  to  allow  the  rector  to  take  part  in  their 
proceedings,  and  sums  raised  by  taxation  were  paid  towards 
the  support  of  the  dissenting  minister.!  No.  62  of  Lord 
Cornbury's  instructions  implies  it.  The  strongest  and  most 
persistent  opposition  within  our  bounds  took  place  at  Bed- 
ford. John  Jones  was  then  (1702-1705)  pastor.  The  oppo- 
sition to  Pritchard  and  Muirson  was  led  by  him  and  Zacha- 
riah  Roberts,  justice  of  the  peace.  Jones  preached  with 
great  bitterness.  The  people  were  thoroughly  aroused. 
Minister  and  justice  were  arrested  and  taken  before  the 
Governor  and  Council,  who  compelled  the  one  to  gi\e  secu- 
rity in  jC2S  for  his  appearance  and  remanded  the  other  to 
the  custody   of    the   sheriff   until    the    next    session   of    the 

*Scharf's  History  of  West.  Co.,  VdI.  II,  p.  723.     Baird's   Ilistorv  of    the 
Bedford  Church,  p.  34. 

t  Baird's  Civil  Status,  p.  604. 
4 


20  CIVIL    STATUS    OF    THE    EARLY    CHURCHES. 

Supreme  Court.  One  of  the  incumbents  calls  the  inhabi- 
tants of  Bedford  "a  very  wilful,  stubborn  people,"*  and 
they  were  known  much  later  "  as  the  most  rigid  and  seyere 
of  all  the  dissenters." 

Lord  Cornbury,  in  his  address  to  the  Assembly  in  1705, 
speaks  of  these  "difficulties,  which  some  very  worthy  minis- 
ters of  the  Church  of  England  have  met  with  in  the  getting 
the  maintenance  settled  upon  them,"  and  recommends  the 
passing  of  an  act  explanatory  of  that  of  1693,  in  order  that 
the  troubles  alluded  to  may  not  recur.  He  further  recom- 
mends the  extension  of  the  act  to  the  towns  on  the  east 
end  of  Long  Island.  An  act  was  passed,  making  better 
provision  for  the  support  of  the  ministry  in  the  parishes 
named  in  the  act  of  1693.  It  was  not  extended  to  others. 
The  right  to  induct  was  conceded  to  the  Governor.  The 
last  section  disclaimed  any  intention  "to  abridge  or  take 
away  the  Indulgence  or  Liberty  of  Conscience  granted  and 
allowed  to  any  other  Protestant  Christians,  by  any  Law,  or 
Statute  of  the  Realm  of  England,  or  of  this  Plantation  ; 
anything  in  this  Act  contained  to  the  contrary  thereof,  in 
any  wise  notwithstanding."  f  Subsequent  legislation  went 
no  further.  The  Church  of  England,  as  an  establishment, 
notwithstanding  the  efforts  of  the  royal  governors,  was  con- 
fined to  the  city  of  New  York,  the  counties  of  Richmond 
and  Queens,  and  to  the  two  parishes  of  Westchester. 

John  Jones  left  Bedford  in  1705  and  Joseph  Morgan 
Eastchester  in  1708.  Through  inability  to  support  an 
Episcopal  minister  by  taxation  and  a  Presbyterian  or  Inde- 
pendent by  voluntary  contributions,  Bedford  was  without  a 
dissenting  ministry  for  fifteen  years  (1705- 1720)  and  Rye 
for  twenty  (i  700-1 720).  In  Eastchester  and  Westchester 
there  was  a  silent  acquiescence  in  the  state  of  affairs,  per- 
haps through  the  influence  of  the  powerful  Heathcote  and 
the  moderation  of  Bartow.  P^astchester,  however,  enjoyed 
the  services  of  William  Tennent  from  November,  1718,  to 


*Baird's  History  of  the  Bedford  Church,  ]).  38. 
t  Baird's  Civil  Status,  p.  603. 


EFFECTS    OF    THE    ACTS    IX    WESTCHESTER    COUNTY.         2/ 

May,  1720.  George  Muirson  and  his  successor,  Christo- 
pher Bridge,  in  the  rectorship  of  Rye,  did  much  to  conciliate 
the  people  of  that  parish.  1720,  Tcnnent  was  called  to 
Bedford  and  Buckingham  to  Rye.  The  opportunity  was 
given  by  the  vacancy  of  three  years  from  the  death  of  Mr. 
Bridge  (May  22,  17 19)  to  the  induction  of  Robert  Jenney 
(June  7,  1722).  During  this  period  the  rate  was  not 
gathered.*  From  this  time  to  the  Revolution  both  churches 
had  pastors  to  their  liking. 

The  results  in  this  county  of  the  legislation  to  which 
we  have  referred,  as  enforced  by  the  royal  governors,  was 
the  loss  to  Presbyterianism  of  the  churches  of  Eastchester 
and  Westchester,  the  division  of  the  Huguenot  church  of 
New  Rochelle  and  the  church  at  Rye,  and  the  payment  of 
rates  for  the  support  of  a  ministry,  whose  services  they  did 
not  want.  The  church  edifices  at  Eastchester,  Westchester, 
and  Rye,  built  at  the  expense  of  the  several  towns,  were 
taken  from  the  dissenters  for  the  use  of  missionaries  of  the 
Gospel  Propagation  Society.  Bedford  alone  retained  its 
house  of  worship.  At  Rye  the  glebe  passed  into  the  pos- 
session of  the  rectors  of  the  parish.  Soon  after  1720  a  law- 
suit was  instituted  for  its  recovery.  The  dispute  was  in  the 
courts  until  1749,  a  period  of  nearly  thirty  years.  A  por- 
tion of  the  land  seems  to  have  been  recovered.! 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  no  efforts  were  put  forth 
by  the  people  for  the  repeal  of  a  law  which  had  been  un- 
fairly interpreted.  As  early  as  1699  a  petition  was  pre- 
sented to  the  General  Assembly  and  a  bill  was  passed 
granting  to  every  town  full  power  to  call  and  settle  a  minis- 
ter by  a  majority  vote  of  the  people.  It  failed  to  receive 
the  approval  of  the  Governor  and  Council,  apparently  be- 
cause in  their  judgment  the  royal  instructions  established 
the  Church  of  England  in  the  province.  Nothing  further 
seems  to  have  been  done  for  seventy  years.  A  bill  was  in- 
troduced by  Col.  Lewis  McmtIs,  member  for  the  Borough  of 


*  Kaiid's  History  of  Bedford  Church,  p.  44. 
t  Baird's  History  of  Rye,  pp.  296,  297,  and  322. 


28  CIVIL    STATUS    OF    THE    EARLY    CHURCHES. 

Westchester,  April  8,  1769,  entitled  "An  Act  to  exempt  all 
protcstants  in  t/ic  counties  of  Westchester,  Xeiv  York,  Queens 
and  Richmond  from  any  taxation  for  the  support  of  the  min- 
isters of  the  Episcopal  denomination.''  It  was  passed  May, 
15th,  but  failed  to  receive  the  approval  of  the  Council. 
November  30,  1769,  John  Thomas,  a  member  from  Westches- 
ter county,  brought  in  a  bill  entitled  "  An  Act  to  exempt 
protcstants  of  all  denominations  from  paying  any  clergyman  by 
compulsory  taxation!'  At  the  same  session  Charles  De  Witt 
of  Ulster  County  presented  one  entitled  ''An  Act  to  exempt 
the  inhabitants  of  the  counties  of  H'estchester,  Aew  Yorh, 
Queens  and  Richmond  from  taxation  for  the  support  of  the 
ministers  of  churches  to  which  they  do  not  belong^  These 
bills  were  amended  and  passed  by  the  Assembly,  but  re- 
jected by  the  Council.  It  became  evident  that  nothing 
favorable  need  be  expected  from  the  royal  Governors  and 
Council.  The  people  were  not  relieved  from  their  unjust 
burdens  until  the  province  of  New  York  became  a  State. 

The  royal  Governors  not  only  sought  to  effect  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  Church  of  England,  but  they  refused  to  in- 
corporate the  Presbyterian  churches.  This  favor  was  granted 
to  the  Episcopal  church  of  Rye  December  19,  1764,  and 
doubtless  to  others  of  the  same  denomination.  Inability  to 
incorporate,  to  the  country  churches,  while  an  injustice,  was 
no  great  injury  —  to  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  New  York 
it  was  a  great  inconvenience.  They  were  obliged  to  convey 
the  fee-simple  of  their  church  property  in  Wall  Street  to  a 
committee  of  the  General  Assembly  of  the  Church  of  Scot- 
land.* This  was  done  in  1730.  Dr.  John  Nicoll,  a  member 
of  that  church,  who  died  in  1743,  desired  to  make  them 
residuary  legatee,  the  income  of  the  bequest  to  be  used  for 
the  relief  of  their  poor.  He  accomplished  his  purpose 
legally  by  making  "  the  Moderator  of  the  General  Assem- 
bly of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  the  Moderator  of  the  Pres- 
bytery of  Edinburgh,  the  Principal  of  the  College  of 
Edinburgh,  the  Professor  of  Divinity  therein,  and  the  Pro- 


*  Baird's  Civil  Status,  p.  607. 


PRESBYTERIAN    CHURCH    OF    NEW    YORK    CITY.  29 

curator  and  Agent  for  the  Church  of  Scotland,"  and  their 
successors  in  office  forever,  trustees.! 

Six  times  between  1720  and  1775  that  church  appHed  for 
incorporation — four  times  to  the  Gox'crnor  and  Council  and 
twice  to  the  King  in  Council.  The  first  was  made  in  March, 
1720  —  the  Council  of  the  province  recommended  that  the 
application  be  granted.  The  rector  and  church  wardens 
of  Trinity  Church  objected,  and  the  request  was  referred  to 
the  Lords  of  Trade,  who  took  no  action.  Soon  after  it  was 
renewed,  but  objection  being  again  offered,  nothing  came  of  it. 

Four  years  later  it  was  made  for  the  third  time  and  re- 
ferred a  second  time  to  the  Lords  of  Trade  ;  and  though 
their  legal  adviser,  Mr.  West,  advised  that  "  by  law  such 
patent  of  incorporation  might  be  granted,"  no  response 
came.  In  1759  ^^^  fourth  petition  was  made  to  the  Council 
with  no  better  result.  Seven  years  later,  in  1766,  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  for  the  fifth  time  sought  legal  recognition 
from  the  King  in  Council.  It  was  referred  to  the  Lords  of 
Trade,  and  by  them  to  the  Council  in  New  York.  The  latter 
pleaded  precedent  ;  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  saw  noth- 
ing formidable  in  it,  but  thought  it  safe  not  to  grant  it. 
The  Lords  of  Trade  saw  nothing  unreasonable  in  it,  but 
doubted  whether  the  coronation  oath  would  permit  the 
King  to  comply.  The  sixth  and  last  attempt  was  made 
in  conjunction  with  other  churches  in  1775.  It  was  to  the 
same  tribunal  as  before.  The  Governor,  Tryon,  was  em- 
powered to  act  favorably,  provided  that  the  Council  and  law 
officers  of  the  province  deemed  it  in  accordance  with  the 
laws  of  the  realm.  The  charter  was  ai)proved  by  the 
Council.  With  their  approval  it  went  to  the  King's  attorney 
for  his  opinion.  Neither  charter  nor  opinion  were  forth- 
coming. The  Revolutionary  struggle  and  the  independence 
of  the  colonies  rendered  further  effort  in  the  same  direction 
unnecessary. 

These  attempts  to  secure  a  simple  act  of  incorporation, 
though  they  proved  a  failure  so  far  as  their  immediate  pur- 


*  Baird's  Civil  Status,  p.  607. 


30  CIVIL    STATUS    OF    THE    EARLY    CHURCHES. 

pose  was  concerned,  were  by  no  means  in  vain.  Tine  action 
of  the  provincial  and  royal  authorities  in  refusing  so  reason- 
able a  request  led  to  a  discussion  in  the  public  press  extending 
over  a  quarter  of  a  century.  It  was  carried  on  largely  by 
"  the  Presbyterian  lawyers,"  William  Smith,  William  Liv- 
ingston, and  John  Morin  Scott,  assisted  by  the  pastor  of  the 
Wall  Street  Church,  Alexander  Gumming.  It  enlisted  the 
sympathies  and  called  attention  to  a  subject,  soon  to  be 
settled  in  the  formation  of  the  first  constitution  of  the 
State  of  New  York.  The  people  were  educated  and  the 
way  prepared  for  the  separation  of  church  and  state,  and 
the  placing  of  all  branches  of  the  Christian  Church  upon  an 
equal  footing. 


CHAPTER   IV. 


The  Presbytery  of  DuteJiess  County. 

THE^  following  extract  from  the  "Minutes  of  the  Pres- 
bytery of  Dutchess  County  in   the  Province  of  New 
York,"  gives  the  reason  for  its  organization  : 

"At  a  Meeting  of  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Elislia  Kent,  Pastor  of  the  First  Church 
in  Phillips  Precinct,  Solomon  Mead,  Pastor  of  the  Church  in  Salem,  Joseph 
Peck,  Pastor  of  the  Second  Church  in  Phillips  Precinct;  at  Phillips  Precinct 
27  October,  1762. 

"Whereas  the  Churches  under  our  Watch  and  Care  are  not  in  Subjection 
to  any  Ecclesiastical  Judicatory  and  finding  it  necessary  to  come  into  some 
proper  method  for  Church  Discipline  the  better  to  maintain  that  Beauty,  Har- 
mony and  Regularity,  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  Great  Head  and  King  of  his 
Church,  has  been  graciously  pleased  to  establish  : —  After  Solemn  Prayer  to 
God  for  Light  and  Direction  in  this  Important  Affair,  we  took  the  matter 
into  Serious  Consideration  and  unanimously  resolved  to  accept  the  Plan  of 
Church  Government  used  in  North  Britain,  and  did  accordingly  adopt  the 
Westminster  Confession  of  Faith  and  larger  and  shorter  Catechisms,  as  our 
Confession  of  Faith  and  the  Directory  for  Worship  and  Discipline  used  by 
the  Said  Church,  to  be  our  Rule  of  Worship  and  Church  Discipline;  agreablc 
to  which,  as  we  belonged  to  no  Ecclesiastical  Judicatory,  we  all  in  the  most 
amicable  manner  unanimously  agreed  to  form  ourselves  into  a  Presbytery, 
which  we  accordingly  did  and  Chose  Mr.  Kent  Moderator,  and  Mr.  Peck 
Clerk,  when  after  free  Conversation  upon  the  Affair,  it  was  resolved,  that  it  be 
farther  Considered  at  our  next  Meeting;  then  adjourned  to  the  first  Tuesday 
in  January  next,  to  meet  at  Salem." 

The  same  persons  met  at  the  appointed  time,  and  deem- 
ing that  it  was  "for  the  Interest  of  Religion  to  be  regularly 
constituted  a  Presbytery  .  .  .  they  unanimously  resohed  to 
apply  to  the  Reverend  Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia 
at  their  ne.xt  Meeting,  to  be  by  them  Constituted  a  Presby- 
tery, and  to  be  joined  to  and  acknowledged  by  that  venera- 
ble Body  as  such."  Mr.  Mead  was  appointed  to  present  the 
petition.  On  account  of  the  prevalence  of  small-pox  in 
Philadelphia,  he  did  not  attend,  but  sent  it  by  the  hand  of 


32        THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  DUTCHESS  COUNTY. 

Rev.  Mr.  Bostwick  of  the  Presbytery  of  New  York.  The 
following  answer  was  read  at  the  next  meeting  of  the  Pres- 
bytery, held  at  Bedford,  June  28,  1763  :  — 

"At  a  Meeting  of  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia,  in  Philadel- 
phia, An.  Dom.  1763,  2S  May,  9  o'clock  A.  M.  A  Request  was  bro't  in  from  a 
Presbytery  in  New  York  Government  to  the  East  of  the  North  River;  desir- 
ing to  be  incorporated  with  this  body,  and  that  some  members  of  the  Presby- 
teries of  New  York  and  Suffolk,  which  are  contiguous,  may  be  allowed  to  be 
joined  with  them  in  a  Presbyterial  Capacity. 

"  After  Several  Members  of  this  Body  had  given  full  Satisfaction  concern- 
ing their  Character  and  their  good  Standing  in  the  Churches:  —  And  the  Sy- 
nod being  assured  that  it  was  not  from  any  Unbrotherly  or  unfriendly  Views,  nor 
from  any  Disaffection  to  the  Neighboring  Churches,  that  they  desired  to  be- 
come members  of  this  Body  :  It  is  agreed  to  grant  their  Request :  —  Provided 
they  adopt  our  Westminster  Confession  of  Faith  and  Catechisms,  and  engage 
to  observe  the  Directory  as  their  Plan  of  Worship  and  Government,  according 
to  the  Agreement  of  this  Synod. 

"  It  is  allowed  that  Mr.  John  Smith  and  Mr.  Chauncey  Graham  join  with 
them;  —  and  from  Suffolk  Presbytery  Messrs.  Samuel  Sackett  and  Eliphalet 
Ball;  and  that  they  be  called  by  the  Name  of  Dutchess  County  Presbytery; 
and  that  the  Rev.  David  Bostwick  procure  a  Copy  from  the  Clerk  of  the 
Synod,  and  send  it  to  them  to  notifie  them  of  our  Determination. 

"  A  true  Copy. 
"  Signed  per  Order, 

,,,       ,,.  ,      ^  •  ,    (     Asst.  Clerk 
"  per  Wm.  Kirkpatnck  <^  „         ,  „ 

(  ot  the  Synod." 

After  the  reading  of  the  above,  it  was  voted  that 

"The  Presbytery  do  agreable  thereto,  heartily.  Cheerfully  and  renewedly 
adopt  the  Westminster  Confession  and  Catechisms,  and  engage  to  observe  the 
Directory  for  Worship  and  Government,  and  do  Cordially  accept  the  worthy 
Members  of  the  Presbyteries  of  New  York  and  Suffolk,  which  the  Synod  have 
allowed  to  join  us ;  of  whom  are  present  Rev.  Messrs.  John  Smith,  Samuel 
Sackett  and  Eliphalet  Ball." 

No  return  was  made  to  the  Synod  until  the  session  of 
May,  1766.  At  that  meeting,  held  in  the  city  of  New  York, 
all  the  members  of  the  Presbytery  were  present  with  the 
exception  of  Solomon  Mead  and  Samuel  Dunlop.  The  fol 
lowing  is  the  minute  of  the  Synod  :  — 

"The  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County,  being  jiresent,  rei)ort  that  they  have 
complied  with  the  stipulations  of  the  Synod  in  the  year  1763,  and  have  adopted 
the  Westminster  Confession  of  Faith  and  Catechisms,  together  with  the 
Directory  for  worship  and  discipline,  according  to  the  usage  of  this  Synod,  as 


ROLL    OF    MINISTERS. 


33 


appears  from  their  minutes,  which  were  produced  and  read ;  and  certain  mem- 
bers of  the  said  Presbytery  being  present,  were  allowed  to  take  their  seats 
accordingly." 

ROLL    OF    MINISTERS. 

Enrolled. 

Oct.  27,  1862,  *July  17,  1776 

"      "  tOct.  22,  1795 

"      "  jMay — ,  1769 

June  28,  1763,  *Feb.  26,  177 1 

"       "        *June  5,  1784 

"       "        SMay  18,  1786 

*March  30,  1784 

Oct.  18,  1763,  lljuly  IS,  1767 

.Sept.  9,  1765,  §Dec.  8,  1783 

Nov.  12,  1765,  *Aug.  24,  1791 


Oct.  12,  1769,  *April  S,  1793 


Name. 

Church. 

I. 

Elisha  Kent,  P., 

Phillips  Precinct,  ist, 

2. 

Solomon  Mead,  P., 

Salem, 

3- 

Joseph  Peck,  P., 

Phillips  Precinct,  2d, 

4- 

John  Smith,  P  , 

Rye  and  White  Pl'ns, 

5- 

'Samuel  Sacket,  P., 

Yorktown, 

6. 

Eliphalet  Ball,  P., 

Bedford, 

7- 

Chauncey  Graham,  P., 

Rumbout, 

8. 

William  Hanna,  P., 

Albany, 

9- 

Samuel  Dunlop,  P., 

Cherry  Valley, 

10. 

Wheeler  Case,  P., 

Poughkeepsie, 

P-, 

Charlotte's  Precinct. 

S.  S., 

Pleasant  Valley. 

II. 

Ichabod  Lewis,  P., 

White  Plains, 

P-, 

Sing  Sing. 

P-, 

Philippi. 

S.  S., 

Red  Mills. 

12. 

Samuel  Mills,  P., 

Bedford, 

S.  S., 

Fredericksburgh. 

13- 

Benjamin  Strong,  S.  S., 

Pound  Ridge, 

14. 

David  Close,  P., 

Fredericksburgh, 

S.  S., 

West, 

IS- 

Blacklcach  Burritt,  S.  S. 

,  Pound  Ridge, 

S.  S. 

,  Crompond. 

16. 

Silas  Constant,  P., 

" 

S.  S., 

Red  Mills. 

17- 

John  Davenport,  P., 

Bedford, 

18. 

Benj.  Judd,  P.. 

Pound  Ridge, 

19. 

Jehu  Minor,  P., 

Philippi, 

20. 

Methuselah  Baldwin,  P. 

,  Pleasant  Valley, 

Dec.  13,  1769,  TfOct.  14,  1789 

May  9,  1770,  §Oct.  12,  1774 
Nov.   24,  1772,  *I783 

June  16,  1774,  lyMay  8,  1794 

May  18,  17S6,  tMay  8,  1794 

May  18, 1786,  tSept.  i8,  1793 
Oct.  16,  1788,  jMay  6,  1795 
Feb.  I,  1792,  tOct.  22,  1795 
Nov.  6,  1793,  ^  "  " 


ROLL    OF    CHURCHES. 


Name.  Connection  Began.     P.istors  and  Stated  Supplies.    Term  of  Service. 

I  1740- 

)  July  17,  1776 
I  June  17,1777 
\  Apr.  8,  1793 

Jehu  Minor,  S.  S.,  ^         '''^'~ 


I.  Phillips  Precinct,  ist,  Oct.  27,  1762,  Elisha  Kent,  P., 
"  Kent's  Parish,"  Ichabod  Lewis,  P., 

Philippi, 


Union, 
(South  East). 


P., 


Feb.  1,  1792 
)  Feb.  1,  1792 
(  July  5,  1808 


*Died.     tTransferred  to   Presbytery  of   Hudson.     {Dismissed.      §0n  roll 
for  last  time.     ||  Suspended.     *  Name  dropped. 


34 


THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    DUTCHESS    COUNTY. 


Name. 

2.  Salem, 
South  Salem, 

3.  rhillips  Precinct,  2d, 

North  Congregat'n 
of  Fredericksburgh, 

Franklin, 
(Patterson), 

4.  Crompond, 

Hanover, 
(Yorktown), 

5.  Rye, 

6.  White  Plains, 


7.  Bedford, 


Connection  Began.     Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies.     Term  of  Service. 
Oct.  27,  1762,  Solomon  Mead,  P.,  j  May 20, 1752 

I  Sept.  4,  1800 
\  Mar.  29, 17  s8 
]  Feb.  8,  1769 

\      177^ 

(  Nov. 24,1772 
i  Nov.24,1772 

i 1783 

1783-1789 

Sturges,  S.  S.,  1789 

Supplied  by  Presbvterv,*         1789-1793 

^   ',        T,'  i    Oct.  1761- 

June  28,  1763,  Samuel  Sacket,  P.,  -"  - 


Joseph  Peck,  P., 
David  Close,  S.  S., 
P., 

Samuel  Mills,  S.  S., 


Rumbout, 

Fishkill, 
Sing  Sing, 

Mt.  Pleasant, 


10.  Po'keepsie, 


I  June  5,  1784 
{   Nov.  1785- 

\ 1786 

1786 

March,  1806 

)  Dec.  30, 1742 

I  Feb.  26,1771 

-1789 


Silas  Constant,  S.  S., 
P., 

John  Smith,  P., 
Supplied  by  Presbytery, 
John  Smith,  P., 

Ichabod  Lewis,  P., 

Supplied  by  Presbytery, 

Eliphalet  Ball,  P., 

Samuel  Mills,  P., 

John  Davenport,  P., 

Isaac  Foster,  S.  S., 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  {       j^^'^^ '  "^f^^. 

Samuel  Blatchford,  S.S  , 

Chauncey  Graham,  P., 


(  Dec.30, 1742 

I  Feb.26, 1771 

I  Oct.  II,  1769 

j  June  17, 1777 

1 786- 1 790 

(  Jan.  2,   1754 

I  Dec.2i,i768 

Dec.  13,1769 

Mavi8,  1786 

May  18,1786 

May  5,  1791 

1792 


793 

Aug.,  1795- 

Apr.,  1796 

i748(?)- 

Oct.  8,  1766 


Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 


•774-1777 
1863-1763 

i  17671?)- 
I  Feb.  26,1771 
j  Oct.  II,  1769 
I  Dec.  9,  1774 
Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  i77S-'79i 
1 763-1 764 


John  Smith,  S.  S  , 
Ichabod  Lewis,  P., 


Oct.  18,  1763,  "  " 

Wheeler  Case,  P., 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 

11.  Ciiarlotte  Precinct,      May  12,  1764,  "  " 

(Pittsburgh),  Wheeler  Case,  P., 

12.  Upper  Salem,  June  26,  1765,  Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 


{  Nov.  1 2, 1 765 
I  Oct.  II,  1770 

1772-1773 

1764 

{  Nov  12,1765 

I  Aug.24, 1791 

1 765-1767 


ROLL    OF    CHURCHES. 


35 


Xame. 
North  Salem, 


13.  Albany, 

14.  Cherry  Valley, 

15.  New  Windsor, 

16.  Pound  Ridge, 


17.  Pleasant  Valley, 


Connection  Began.     Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies.     Term  of  Service. 
John  Blydenburgh,  S.  S.,  1772-1774 

Supjilied  by  Presbytery,*  1 774-1775 

Joel  Benedict,  S.  S.,  1783 

John  Blindbur,  S.  S., 
Sept.  9,  1765,  William  Hanna,  P.  -July  17,  1767 

"         "      Samuel  Dunlop,  P., 
(May  13,1767)  Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  1767 

1770,  Benjamin  Strong,  S.  S.,    <    .!_  ,-7-, 

Black:eachBurritt,S.S.,iJT'^''^7^ 
I      Apr.    1776 

Su])plied  by  Presbytery,*         1776-1787 
Benjamin  Judd,  S.  S., 

"      P., 
Abraham  Barfield,  S.  S. 
Samuel  Blatchford,  S.  S 
1770  (?),  Wheeler  Case,  S.  S., 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,' 


j    Mav,    1788 
i  Oct.  1 6, 17?° 


(  Oct.  i6, 17J 
j  May  I,  I7( 


7S8 

93 

1794 

(     Aug.,  1795 

)      Apr.,  179b 

I 1770 

I  Aug.24,1797 
1791-1792 


Methuselah  Baldwin,  P.,  J  ^°^-  ^'  '793 


iS.   West  Congregat'n  of,  Oct.  12,  1774,  David  Close,  S.  S., 

Fredericksburg,  Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 

Gregory's  Parish. 

19    Dover,  (Oct.  8,  1777),  Supi)lied  by  Presbytery, 

20.  l-ittle  Nine  Partners         "         "  "  " 

near  ye  Oblong, 

21.  Presb.  Providence,      May  12,  17S7,  Wheeler  Case,  S.  S.(.'), 

Society    in    Clintoh 
Precinct. 

22.  Red  Mills,  (Oct.  11,1787)  Silas  Constant,  S.  S., 

Supplied  by  Presbytery, 

Ichabod  Lewis,  S.  S., 


ept.  4,  179S 
Oct.,  1774- 
Nov.,    17S1 
1787 

1777-8 
Jan.  1778 

1787 


1785-1787 
1787 

1791 

Apr.  8,  1793 


Of  the  twenty  minister.s,  most  were  installed  pastors. 
Seven,  Messrs.  Kent,  Smith,  Sackct,  Graham,  Case,  Lewis, 
and  Close,  died  while  connected  with  the  Presbytery.  Four, 
Messrs.  Peck,  Burritt,  Davenport,  and  Judd,  were  dismissed. 
William  Hanna  was  suspended  July  17,  1767,  for  becoming 
an  attorney-at-law.  The  name  of  Samuel  Mills  was  dropped 
because  he  joined  the  Anabaptists  without  a  regular  dismis- 

*. Supplies   were   appointed    by    I'resbytery,   and   generally    fultillcd    their 
appointments. 


36  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    DUTCHESS    COUNTY. 

sion.  The  names  of  Eliphalet  Ball,  Samuel  Dunlop,  and 
Benjamin  Strong,  who  had  not  reported  themselves  for 
years,  disappear  without  record  of  action. 

Silas  Constant  was  received  at  his  own  request  as  an  ad- 
visory member  or  stated  correspondent  May  8,  1786.  This 
connection  was  dissolved  on  his  own  motion  May  8,  1794. 
Blackleach  Burritt  had  become  pastor  of  a  church  in  Ver- 
mont before  his  dismissal.  Solomon  Mead,  Jehu  Minor,  and 
Methusaleh  Baldwin,  the  only  remaining  members  of  the 
Presbytery,  were  transferred  to  the  newly-erected  Presby- 
tery of  Hudson  by  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  New  Jersey, 
October  22,  1795. 

Samuel  Sacket  and  the  Crompond  church  seceded  from 
the  Presbytery  October  14,  1767,  for  reasons  which  are  not 
on  record.     The  minute  (August,  1768)  is  — 

"  Resolved  unanimously  as  they  [the  reasons  assigned]  consist  of  general 
ambiguous  expressions,  so  we  judge  them  but  ill-grounded,  not  to  say  bitter 
reflections." 

A  committee  consisting  of  Messrs.  Kent  and  Ball  were 
appointed  "to  answer  his  reasons"  before  a  commission  of 
the  Synod  then  sitting  at  Bedford,  which  had  been  ordered 
at  Mr.  Sacket's  request  to  investigate  "  the  unhappy  dif- 
ference betwixt  him  and  the  Presbytery."  The  commission, 
it  seems,  "  annexed  him  to  the  Presbytery  of  New  York." 
The  Synod  did  not  approve  of  this  action,  and  by  a  "  great 
majority  "  he  was  "  returned  to  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess 
County."  He  did  not  attend  the  meetings  nor  perform 
the  duties  of  a  Presbyter.  His  name  does  not  appear  even 
among  the  absent.  The  Presbytery  seems  to  have  believed 
that  he  was  no  longer  of  their  number,  and  he  evidently  re- 
garded himself  as  a  member  of  the  Presbytery  of  New 
York,  for  though  his  name  was  not  upon  their  roll,  he  ap- 
plied to  the  Synod,  May  23,  1775,  to  be  transferred  back 
from  that  body  to  the  Dutchess  County  Presbytery.  His 
request  was  granted. 

The  nature  of  the  connection  of  the  churches  with  the 
Presbytery  is  difficult  to  determine.     Due  allowance  must 


THE    CHURCHES    AND    THE    PRESBYTERY.  37 

be  made  for  possible  omissions  in  the  minutes.  The  Presby- 
tery was  organized  by  the  pastors  of  three  churches  which 
were  not  represented  by  laymen.  It  was  e\  idently  their  in- 
tention, and  probably  that  of  their  peo])le,  that  these  con- 
gregations should  belong  to  the  new  body.  Messrs.  Smith 
and  Graham  of  the  Presbytery  of  New  York,  and  Messrs. 
Sacket  and  Ball  of  the  Presbytery  of  Suffolk,  were  trans- 
ferred to  it,  but  no  mention  is  made  by  the  Synod  or  the 
Presbytery  of  the  churches  to  which  they  ministered.  None 
of  these  congregations  were  represented  by  elders  or  dele- 
gates until  the  fourth  session,  October  i8,  1763.  An  e.xami- 
nation  of  the  record  shows  that  only  four  churches,  Albany, 
Cherry  Valley,  Pound  Ridge,  and  Presbyterian  Providence 
Society  in  Clinton  Precinct,  were  formally  received  under 
the  care  of  the  Presbytery.  Counting  the  original  churches, 
the  five  transferred  from  other.  Presbyteries,  the  four  re- 
ceived under  its  care,  and  others  over  which  pastors  were 
installed  by  its  authority,  we  are  able  to  make  a  list  of  six- 
teen out  of  the  twenty-two  as  under  its  jurisdiction — Plrst 
and  Second  Churches  of  Phillips  Precinct,  Salem,  Crom- 
pond.  Rye,  White  Plains,  Bedford,  Rondout,  Albany,  Cherry 
Valley,  Pound  Ridge,  Presbyterian  Providence  Society  in 
Clinton  Precinct,  Poughkeepsie,  Charlotte  Precinct,  Sing- 
Sing  and  Pleasant  Valley.  Six,  Upper  Salem,  New  Wind.sor, 
West  Congregation  of  Fredericksburgh,  Dover,  Little  Nine 
Partners  near  ye  Oblong  and  Red  Mills,  applied  for  supplies 
and  advice.  New  Windsor,  we  believe,  belonged  to  the 
Presbytery  of  New  York. 

How  many  of  these  churches  had  a  bench  of  elders  and 
conducted  their  internal  affairs  according  to  the  usages  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church,  we  are  unable  to  say.  Of  the 
three  churches  whose  pastors  organized  the  Presbytery  not 
a  single  one  had  a  Presbyterian  organization  when  that 
event  took  place.  The  question  of  adopting  "  ye  Presbyte- 
rian form  of  church  government"  came  before  the  South 
Salem  Church,  Sept.  29,  1763.  It  was  decided  in  the  affirm- 
ative and  five  ruling  elders  were  elected.  The  term  of  ser- 
vice was  fixed  at  one  year.     No  such  action  seems  to  have 


38        THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  DUTCHESS  COUNTY. 

been  taken  in  the  other  churches  at  this  time.  More  than 
twenty  years  later,  Sept.  4,  1786,  the  First  Church  of 
Phillips  Precinct  adopted  the  Westminster  Standards,  "  ex- 
cepting" in  ye  instance  of  Congregational  assemblies  or  rul- 
ing elders."  About  forty  years  more  elapsed  before  they 
had  a  session.  The  Second  Church  apparently  retained  a 
Congregational  form  of  government  until  1804.  April  25th 
of  that  year  they  petitioned  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson  for  a 
supply  "to  preach  and  ordain  elders."  Bedford  had  the 
eldership  in  1756,  Crompond  by  1763,  and  Pleasant  Valley 
in  1788.     When  it  was  adopted,  we  do  not  know. 

All  the  evidence  at  hand,  unless  it  be  the  fact  that  the 
church  edifice  was  called  the  Presbyterian  Meeting  House, 
indicates  that  the  Upper  .Salem  Church  was  Congregational. 
The  building  was  erected  in  1764,  but  there  seems  to  have 
been  no  organization  until  Aug.  20,  1779,  when  the  people 
of  the  vicinity  assembled  to  consider  the  expediency  of  form- 
ing one,  and  decided  in  the  affirmative.  The  organization 
was  effected  five  days  later.  A  Congregational  Church  was 
organized,  which,  Jan.  24,  1786,  was  incorporated  as  the 
"  Congregationalist  Society  of  Upper  Salem."  A  Presby- 
terian reorganization  was  not  effected  until  1832. 

The  West  Congregation  of  Fredericksburgh  began  its 
existence  in  connection  with  P'airfield  East  Consociation  as 
a  Congregational  Church,  and  there  is  no  proof  of  any 
change.  That  some  of  these  churches  were  apparently 
represented  by  elders  is  indecisive,  as  among  those  thus 
designated  in  the  minutes  are  the  names  of  persons  who 
were  not  in  the  eldership.  Among  the  delegates  from  the 
Crompond  Church  were  Obadiah  Purdy  and  Robert  Lee, 
neither  of  whom  were  ever  members  of  the  Session.  Both 
the  First  and  Second  Churches  of  Phillips  Precinct  were 
represented  at  the  meetings  of  Presbytery,  while  neither 
had  a  Presbyterian  organization. 

The  church  at  Albany  was  transferred  to  the  Presbytery 
o[  New  York  by  the  .Synod  of  New  York  and  I'hiladelphia, 
May  23,  1775.  I'hc  Cliurch  of  Cherry  Valley  was  ti-ans- 
ferred   in    1790  by  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  New  Jersey 


THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  DUTCHESS  COUNTY.        39 

to  the  newly  erected  Presbytery  of  Albany.  There  are  no 
entries  in  the  minutes  about  the  following  churches  after 
the  dates  affixed  to  their  names.  Po'kecpsic,  Oct.  1772; 
North  Salem,  Oct.  12,  1774;  Fishkill,  Oct.  8,  1777;  Sing 
Sing,  Sept.  21,  1791  ;  West  Congregation  of  Fredericks- 
burgh,  Oct.  10,  1787;  Red  Mills,  Sept.  1792;  Crompond, 
May  8,  1794.  North  Salem  and  Sing  Sing  are  represented 
at  the  first  meeting  of  the  Associated  Westchester  Presby- 
tery in  1792  Po'keepsie,  Crompond,  and  Red  Mills  soon 
after  came  into  the  same  organization.  Dover  and  Little 
Nine  Partners,  which  are  only  mentioned  once  in  the  minutes 
of  Dutchess  Presbytery,  look  to  the  new  organization  for 
advice  and  supplies.  The  churches  at  Rye  and  White 
Plains  were  burned  and  their  congregations  scattered  by  the 
revolutionary  war. 

At  the  dissolution  of  the  Presbytery  there  remained  the 
following  churches  :  Union,  Franklin,  Salem,  Bedford,  Rum- 
bout,  Pleasant  Valley,  Pitt.sburgh,  and  Pound  Ridge  —  eight 
in  all. 

The  Presbytery  was  never  a  large  one.  It  began  with 
three  ministers  and  three  churches.  When  largest,  it  had 
but  ten  ministers  and  perhaps  as  many  churches.  At  the 
dissolution  there  were  three  ministers  and  eight  churches. 
The  attendance  at  the  meetings' was  usually  from  four  to  six 
ministers  and  from  two  to  foui**' elders. 

Two  stated  meetings  were  held  each  year.  The  business  ' 
usually  transacted  was  the  appointment  of  a  committee  "to 
transact  such  business  as  might  come  before  them  "  during 
the  intervals  between  the  meetings,  the  appointment  of  sup- 
plies for  vacant  churches,  making  the  necessary  orders  inci- 
dent to  changes  in  the  pastorates,  the  giving  of  advice  to 
individuals  and  churches,  and  c|uestions  of  discipline.  Jacob 
Lockwood,  of  the  church  at  Pound  Ridge,  was  disciplined  by 
the  Session.  Among  the  charges  against  him  we  find  one 
for  "not  calling  his  family  together  statedly  for  prayers 
evening  and  morning." 

The  Presbytery  did  almo.st  nothing  in  the  line  of  minis- 
terial education.     Only  three   were  licensed  —  John  Close, 


40        THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  DUTCHESS  COUNTY. 

Nov.  12,  1765,  David  Close,  Jan.  7,  1772,  and  Joseph  Hazzard, 
May  6,  1790;  and  five  licentiates  were  ordained  —  Wheeler 
Case,  Nov.  12,  1765,  Ichabod  Lewis,  Oct.  12,  1769,  Samuel 
Mills,  Dec.  13,  1769,  David  Close,  Nov.  24,  1772,  and  Me- 
thuselah Baldwin,  Nov.  6,  1793.  Doubtless  it  was  not  for 
want  of  interest,  but  because  they  lacked  opportunity. 

The  missionary  operations  of  the  Presbytery  were  limited 
to  the  supply  of  the  churches  under  their  own  care.  Occasion- 
ally members  were  appointed  by  the  Synod  to  itinerate  in  the 
newly  settled  portions  of  the  country.  The  Synod,  May  25, 
1767,  ordered  that  collections  should  be  taken  up  in  all  the 
congregations  for  missions  in  the  frontier  settlements  and 
among  the  Indians,  and  devised  a  plan  for  carrying  its  orders 
into  effect.  The  Presbytery  voted  to  make  a  public  collec- 
tion in  all  the  congregations,  and  appointed  Chauncey 
Graham  treasurer.     The  results  we  are  unable  to  give. 

The  records  under  date  of  Oct.  1790,  contain  a  minute 
of  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  New  Jersey,  ordering  col- 
lections in  the  churches  for  home  missions,  for  the  support 
of  candidates  for  the  ministry,  and  for  the  expenses  of  the 
commissioners  to  the  General  Assembly.  The  Presbytery 
ordered  that  a  collection  should  be  taken  up  for  the  last 
named  object.  Mr.  Judd  was  appointed  to  itinerate  for  six 
weeks  among  the  vacant  congregations  of  Westchester  and 
Dutchess  Counties.  At  the  next  meeting  in  May,  1791,  a 
minute  was  adopted,  which,  while  admitting  the  claims  of 
missions  and  education,  affirmed  the  broken  state  of  several 
of  our  congregations,  due  to  the  late  war,  and  the  consequent 
inability  to  support  themselves,  "  together  with  the  back- 
wardness in  many  of  the  people  in  our  parts  to  contribute 
for  the  support  of  the  Gospel,"  rendered  it  impracticable  to 
take  up  collections  for  such  purposed. 

Attempts  were  made  early  in  the  history  of  the  Presby- 
tery to  provide  for  the  expenses  of  the  commissioners  to  the 
Synod.  May  6,  1795,  action  was  taken  on  the  plan  of  the 
General  Assembly  for  the  relief  of  invalid  ministers  and 
their  families.  'Jhe  Presbytery  did  not  approve  of  it,  be- 
cause it  was  "  so  general  and  extensive." 


CHAPTER    V. 


TJie  Presbytery  of  DutcJicss  County  continued. 

OCT.  12,  1774,  as  the  war  cloud  was  rising,  the  Presbytery 
at    a  meeting    held   at   Salem   passed   the  following 
minute  :  — 

"The  Presbytery,  taking  into  serious  consideration  the  heavy  judgments 
with  which  a  holy  God  is  visiting  our  guilty  land  and  nation,  in  suffering  our 
civil  and  religious  rights  to  be  invaded  and  a  spirit  of  discord  and  contention 
to  prevail  with  many  commotions  of  a  dangerous  and  threatening  aspect,  con- 
sidering also  our  great  defections,  the  manifest  decay  of  vital  piety,  the  crimi- 
nal indifference  of  professors,  the  growth  of  infidelity,  the  general  and  awful 
prevalence  of  vice  and  immorality,  the  great  security,  stupidity,  hardness 
of  heart  and  incorrigibleness  under  and  contempt  of  the  happy  privileges  and 
glorious  advantages  of  the  Gospel,  whereby  we  have  highly  incensed  a  holy 
God,  provoked  Him  to  withhold  His  Holy  Spirit  and  rendered  ourselves  ob- 
noxious to  the  severest  judgments,  think  ourselves  loudly  called  to  humilia- 
tion, repentance  and  deep  abasement  before  a  holy  (iod. 

"  We  do  therefore  urgently  recommend  to  the  congregations  under  our  care 
to  keep  a  Day  of  Solemn  Fasting  and  Prayer  to  Almighty  God,  that  he  would 
in  mercy  turn  away  deserved  wrath,  restore  and  continue  to  us  our  invaluable 
privileges,  both  civil  and  religious ;  that  earnest  supplication  be  made  for 
onr  King  and  all  in  authority,  that  under  their  wise  and  prudent  administra- 
tions we  may  lead  quiet  and  peaceable  lives  in  all  gladness  and  honesty;  and 
we  especially  recommend  that  impottunate  cries  be  made  to  God  for  the  Holy 
Ghost  to  be  sent  down  upon  His  churches,  that  we  may  be  made  a  truly  humble 
and  penitent  people,  that  He  would  revive  His  own  work  gloriously  in  our 
congregations,  cause  religion  in  its  power  and  purity  to  prevail  thro'  the  land 
and  make  Jerusalem  a  ])raise  in  all  the  earth,  to  the  glory  of  the  riches  of  His 
grace  in  Jesus  Christ,  our  Lord.  The  day  appointed  as  a  Day  of  Fasting  and 
Prayer  is  Wednesday  the.  26th  day  of  instant  October." 

The  first  blood  was  shed  in  Massachusetts  in  April, 
1775.  At  the  ne.\t  stated  meeting  held  at  Fishkill,  May  3 
following,  this  minute  was  adopted  :  — 

"The  Presbytery,  taking  into  serious  consideration  the  manifest  decay  of 
religion,  the  awful  backslidings  and  prevalence  of  all  kinds  of  wickedness  in 
our  nation,  for  which  God  is  visiting  us  with  very  grievous  and  heavy  judg- 
ments, suffering  the  nation  to  be  distracted  with  a  spirit  of  discord  and  con- 
6 


42  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    DUTCHESS    COUNTY. 

tention,  our  civil  and  religions  privileges  to  be  invaded,  actual  hostilities  to  be 
commenced  in  the  Province  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  whereby  numbers  have 
been  slain  and  the  great  danger  of  a  civil  war  through  all  the  American  colo- 
nies and  of  the  entire  ruin  of  the  whole  British  empire,  are  convinced  of  the  loud 
call  of  Providence  for  not  only  private,  but  public,  fasting  and  prayer,  for  deep 
humiliation,  and  afflicting  our  souls  before  God,  and  for  our  united  earnest 
cries  and  supplications  to  Almighty  God  that  He  would  not  desert,  but  appear 
for  the  relief  of  a  guilty  nation,  that  He  would  be  pleased  to  pour  out  of  His 
Spirit  upon  all  ranks  'and  denominations  of  people  among  us  that  pre- 
vailing wickedness  may  be  suppressed,  vital  piety  gloriously  promoted,  discord 
made  to  subside  and  unanimity  once  more  restored,  and  lasting  union  estab- 
lished among  us  upon  a  just  and  equitable  basis.  We  do,  therefore,  appoint 
Thursday,  the  nth  day  of  this  instant,  to  be  observed  as  a  Day  of  Fasting  and 
Prayer  by  all  congregations  under  our  care." 

In  accordance  with  the  recommendation  of  the  Synod 
the  Presbytery  voted,  October  12,  1775,  to  spend  the  last 
Thursday  of  each  month  as  a  Day  of  Prayer.  The  recom- 
mendation was  renewed  October  11,  1780. 

The  British  army  under  General  Howe  entered  West- 
chester County  in  October,  1776.  On  the  28th  of  the  month, 
the  battle  of  the  White  Plains  was  fought.  Three  days  later 
Washington  withdrew  his  army  to  the  hills  of  North  Castle, 
and  later  still  further  north.  P'rom  this  time  onward  the 
country  between  Spuyten  Duyvil  Creek  and  Croton  River 
became  the  so-called  Neutral  Ground,  in  the  possession  of 
neither  army,  but  subject  to  the  raids  and  "grand  forages" 
of  both.  "  No  region  was  more  harried  and  trampled  down 
by  friend  and  foe."  The  description  of  a  portion  of  this 
section  by  Dr.  Dwight  vividly  portrays  its  desolation  :  —  "  In 
the  autumn  of  1777  I  resided  for  some  time  in  this  county. 
The  lines  of  the  British  were  then  in  the  neighborhood  of 
King's  Bridge,  and  those  of  the  Americans  at  Byram  River. 
These  unhappy  people  were,  therefore,  exposed  to  the 
depredations  of  both.  Often  they  were  actually  plundered, 
and  always  were  liable  to  this  calamity.  They  feared  every- 
body whom  they  saw,  and  loved  nobody.  It  was  a  curious 
fact  to  a  philosopher,  and  a  melancholy  one  to  a  moralist  to 
hear  their  conversation.  To  every  question  they  gave  such 
an  answer  as  would  please  the  enquirer  ;  or,  if  they  despaired 
of  pleasing,  such  an  one  as  would  not  provoke  him.     Fear 


THE    NEUTRAL    GROUND.  43 

was  apparently  the  only  passion  by  which  they  were  ani- 
mated. The  power  of  volition  seemed  to  have  deserted 
them.  They  were  not  civil,  but  obsequious  ;  not  obliging, 
but  subservient.  They  yielded  with  a  kind  of  apathy,  and 
very  quietly,  what  you  asked,  and  what  they  supposed  it  im- 
possible for  them  to  retain.  If  you  treated  them  kindly 
they  received  it  coldly  —  not  as  a  kindness,  but  a  compensa- 
tion for  injuries  done  them  by  others.  When  you  spoke 
to  them  they  answered  you  without  either  good  or  ill- 
nature,  and  without  any  appearance  of  reluctance  or  hesita- 
tion ;  but  they  subjoined  neither  questions  nor  remarks  of 
their  own,  proving  to  your  full  conviction  that  they  felt  no 
interest  either  in  your  conversation  or  in  yourself.  Both 
their  countenances  and  their  motions  had  lost  every  trace  of 
animation  and  of  feeling.  Their  features  were  smoothed 
not  in  serenity,  but  apathy  ;  and  instead  of  being  settled 
in  the  attitude  of  quiet  thinking,  strongly  indicated  that  all 
thought  beyond  what  was  merely  instinctive  had  fled  their 
minds  forever, 

"Their  houses,  in  the  meantime,  were  in  great  measure 
scenes  of  desolation.  Their  furniture  was  extensively 
plundered  or  broken  to  pieces  ;  the  walls,  floors,  and  win- 
dows were  injured  both  by  violence  and  decay,  and  were 
not  repaired,  because  the)-  had  no  means  of  repairing  them, 
and  because  they  were  exposed  to  the  repetition  of  the  same 
injuries;  their  cattle  were  gone;  their  inclosures  were 
burnt,  where  they  were  capable  of  becoming  fuel ;  and  in 
many  cases  thrown  down  where  they  were  not.  Their  fields 
were  covered  with  a  rank  growth  of  weeds  and  wild  grass. 

"Amid  all  this  appearance  of  desolation,  nothing  struck 
my  own  eye  more  forcibly  than  the  sight  of  this  great  road, 
the  passage  from  New  York  to  Boston,  Where  I  had  here- 
tofore seen  a  continual  succession  of  horses  and  carriages, 
and  life  and  bustle  lent  a  sprightliness  to  all  the  environing 
objects,  not  a  single,  solitary  traveler  was  visible  from  week 
to  week,  or  from  month  to  month.  The  world  was  nu)tion- 
less  and  silent,  except  when  one  of  these  unhappy  people 


44  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    DUTCHESS    COUNTY. 

ventured  upon  a  rare  and  lonely  excursion  to  the  house  of  a 
neighbor  no  less  unhappy,  or  a  scouting  party  traversing 
the  county  in  quest  of  enemies,  alarmed  the  inhabitants 
with  expectation  of  new  injuries  and  suffering.  The  very 
tracks  of  the  carriages  were  grown  over  and  obliterated, 
and  where  they  were  discernible,  resembled  the  faint  im- 
pressions of  chariot  wheels  said  to  be  left  on  the  pavements 
of  Herculaneum.  The  grass  was  of  full  height  for  the' 
scythe,  and  strongly  realized  to  my  mind  for  the  first  time 
the  proper  import  of  that  picturesque  declaration  of  the 
Song  of  Deborah,  '  In  the  days  of  Shamgar,  the  son  of 
Anath,  in  the  days  of  Jael,  the  highways  were  unoccupied, 
and  the  travelers  walked  through  by-paths.  The  inhabitants 
of  the  villages  ceased  ;  they  ceased  in  Israel.'"* 

In  the  Neutral  Ground  were  three  Presbyterian  Churches, 
Rye,  White  Plains,  and  Sing  Sing.  In  the  evening  of  Nov. 
4,  1776,  while  Washington  and  the  American  Army  were  in 
the  hills  of  North  Castle,  two  miles  north  of  White  Plains, 
the  Court  House,  Presbyterian  Church,  and  several  other 
buildings  in  that  place,  were  burned  by  American  soldiers 
without  orders  and  against  the  wishes  of  their  superior  offi- 
cers. The  church  at  Rye  was  reduced  to  ashes  between  that 
date  and  1779.  The  congregations  were  scattered.  The 
people  sought  safety  in  northern  Westchester  and  Dutchess 
counties  and  Connecticut.  The  members  of  the  Sing  Sing 
Church,  though  their  house  of  worship  remained,  must  have 
suffered  almost  as  much  as  their  fellow  churchmen  at  Rye 
and  White  Plains.  At  a  meeting  of  the  Presbytery  held  at 
Philippi,  June  17,  1777,  Ichabod  Lewis,  "on  account  of  the 
melancholy  and  broken  state  of  his  congregation  in  the 
White  Plains  occasioned  by  the  present  destructive  war," 
requested  the  dissolution  of  the  pastoral  relation.  The  re- 
quest was  granted.  On  the  following  day  a  call  was  pre- 
sented for  Mr.  Lewis  from  the  church  at  I'hilippi,  and 
arrangements  were  made  for  his  installation. 

The  year  1779  was  a  trying  year  for  the  churches  under 


Dwight's  Travels  in  New  ICngland  and  New  York,  Vol.  Ill,  j)]).  491-2. 


CHURCHES    BURNED.  45 

the  care  of  the  Presbytery,  located  in  northern  Westchester. 
Raids  were  made  by  the  enemy  north  of  the  Croton  River. 
On  account  of  the  incursions  of  the  Tories  and  Cowboys, 
this  region  became  hardly  more  desirable  as  a  place  of  resi- 
dence than  the  Neutral  Ground.  Presbyterians,  both  minis- 
ters and  laymen,  were  sterling"  patriots,  and  to  them,  as 
opportunity  offered,  the  enemy  showed  no  mercy.  Samuel 
Sacket  of  Crompond  was  so  outspoken  that  he  was  obliged 
to  leave  his  charge  and  seek  safety  in  Sharon,  Conn.  Black - 
leach'  Burritt  supplied  his  place.  The  last  meeting  of  Pres- 
bytery he  attended  was  held  May  6,  1778.  David  Close,  of 
the  Second  Church  of  Phillips  Precinct,  is  said  to  have  been 
a  "  great  friend  to  his  country  "  and  to  have  "suffered  much." 
Wheeler  Case,  of  Charlotte  Precinct,  is  said  to  have  been 
"robbed  of    nearly  all   he  possessed  by   British    soldiers." 

Many  of  the  churches  probably  were  places  of  rendez- 
vous for  the  militia  and  local  committees  of  safety.  This 
was  certainly  true  of  Crompond.  Here  was  located  an 
outpost  of  the  American  army,  and  at  first  two  houses,  one 
the  parsonage  belonging  to  the  church,  were  used  as  barracks. 
June  13,  1779,  Colonel  Abercrombic  marched  from  Yer- 
i:)lanck's  Point  and  burned  them.  The  church  was  then 
occui)ied  for  the  same  j)urpose.  Eleven  days  later,  two 
squadrons  of  British  light  horse  (Tarlton's  and  Simcoe's) 
reduced  it  to  ashes,  and  killed  and  captured  thirty  of  the 
militia.  They  stated  that  they  had  burned  old  Sacket's 
prayers,  and  that  they  would  have  burned  him  had  they 
caught  him. 

July  2d  of  the  same  year,  Tarlton  burned  the  churches 
of  Bedford  and  Pound  Ridge.  The  former  had  been  for 
nearly  three  years  the  place  of  meeting  of  the  courts  of  the 
county.  P>om  this  time  to  Nov.  1784,  they  met  in  Presby- 
terian Meeting  House  of  Upper  Salem.  Samuel  Mills  left 
Bedford  and  resided  in  Phillips  Precinct.  The  Presb)  tery 
was  not  in  session  from  1778  to  1780.  The  people  of  north- 
ern Westchester,  less  impoverished  than  their  brethren 
nearer  New  A'ork,  within  seven  vears  relniililed  their  houses 


46  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    DUTCHESS    COUNTY. 

of  worship — Bedford  1783,  Crompond  1785,  and  Pound 
Ridge  1786.  The  Rye  people  were  houseless  until  1793, 
and  those  of  White  Plains  made  use  of  the  Court  House 
until  1825. 

War  is  not  usually  a  friend  to  grace.  It  is  as  disastrous 
to  piety  as  it  is  to  life.  A  condition,  such  as  has  been  de- 
scribed, is  a  favorable  one  for  the  growth  of  unbelief,  indif- 
ference, infidelity,  vice  and  crime.  Apparently  the  crop  was 
an  abundant  one.  A  visitation  of  destructive  insects  in 
1784  seems  to  have  been  regarded  as  a  judgment  of  God  on 
account  of  these  sins.  The  minutes  of  the  meeting  of  Oct. 
6,  1784,  contains  the  following: 

"  Presbytery,  reflecting  upon  the  a-wful  prevalence  of  infidelity,  the  abounding 
of  impiety  with  all  kinds  of  immorality,  the  inattention  of  people  in  general  to 
the  duties  of  religion,  the  zaant  of  zeal  in  the  professor's  of  godliness,  together 
Ziiith  the  manifestation  of  God''s  displeasure  in  afflicting  us  with  destroying  insects 
that  devour  the  more  necessary  supports  of  life,  therefore  recommend  the  several 
churches  in  connection  with  this  Presbytery  to  observe  a  Day  of  Fasting  and 
Prayer  to  sup])licate  the  Divine  Being  for  the  removal  of  the  aforesaid  judg- 
ment and  especially  for  the  outpouring  of  His  Spirit  upon  us.  This  fast  is 
recommended  to  be  attended  as  follows  :  at  Charlotte  the  first  Wednesday  in 
November  next ;  at  Fredericksburgh  1 2th  of  November;  at  Philippi  Tuesday 
i6th." 

As  early  as  Oct.  1783,  the  Presbytery  turned  its  attention 
to  the  Neutral  Ground,'  and,  "  taking  into  consideration  the 
destitute  circumstances  of  the  lower  parts  of  Westchester 
as  to  the  preached  Gospel,"  appointed  Messrs.  Mills,  Burritt, 
and  Lewis  to  spend  each  a  Sabbath  there.  But  few  Presby- 
terians had  remained,  and  doubtless  most,  who  had  sought 
safety  in  flight,  did  not  return.  Oct.  ii,  1786,  supplies 
were  appointed  for  White  Plains.  May,  1789,  the  same  was 
done  for  Rye ;  and  in  the  October  following.  White  Plains 
and  Sing  Sing  were  thus  provided  for. 

The  Federal  Convention  concluded  its  labors  in  Sept. 
1787,  and  reported  the  Constitution,  which  they  had  drafted, 
to  Congress.  On  the  28th  of  the  month  that  body  voted 
unanimously  to  transmit  that  document  to  the  legislatures  of 
the  several  States  in  order  that  it  might  be  submitted  to  con- 
ventions,  chosen   by  the  people.      Feeling   in    some   of  the 


THE    FEDERAL    CONSTITUTION.  47 

States  was  at  white  heat.  New  York  was  amoni;  the  doubt- 
ful ones.  The  excitement  was  accordingly  very  great.  The 
party  in  power,  led  by  Governor  George  Clinton,  was  "  pas- 
sionately opposed  "  to  the  Constitution.  The  southern 
counties  along  the  Hudson,  and  on  Long  Island,  with  New 
York  City,  favored  it,  while  Ulster  and  those  to  the  north 
were  in  opposition  with  the  Governor.  In  view  of  this  state 
of  affairs  the  Presbytery,  May  8,  1788,  recommended  a  Day 
of  Fasting  and  Prayer  in  the  following  terms  : 

"The  Presbytery  of  Dutchess,  taking  into  consideration  the  affecting  and 
critical  situation  of  their  country,  the  languishing  state  of  trade  and  agriculture, 
the  want  of  energy  in  government,  the  great  importance  that  the  United  States 
may  be  directed  by  Infinite  Wisdom  with  respect  to  the  adoption  or  rejection 
of  the  constitution  proposed  by  the  Federal  Convention,  above  all  taking  into 
view  the  decay  of  the  life  and  power  of  religion  in  their  res])ective  churches 
and  congregations,  and  the  rapid  increase  of  vice  and  immorality  through  the 
land,  do  hereby  recommend  that  Wednesday  the  nth  day  of  June  ne.\t  be 
observed  by  the  churches  and  congregations  under  their  care  as  a  day  of 
solemn  humiliation,  fasting  and  prayer,  and  would  earnestly  exhort  their  re- 
spective charges  to  assemble  in  public  on  said  day  and  unitedly  lament  with 
bleeding  hearts  their  departure  from  a  holy  God,  the  awful  suspension  of  the 
divine  influences  and  the  general  inattention  to  the  all-important  things  of 
religion,  and  fervently  to  implore  the  returning  presence  of  the  God  of  Zion 
the  plentiful  effusion  of  the  Divine  Spirit  and  the  advancement  of  the  Re 
deemer's  kingdom  through  the  land  and  world;  also  to  unite  in  fervent  suppli 
cation  that  God  would  appear  in  this  day  of  gloominess  and  thick  darkness 
preserve  our  people  from  internal  divisions,  prosper  our  trade  and  husbandry 
l^reside  in  the  deliberations  of  the  convention  of  this  state  and  favour  the 
United  States  with  a  constitution  which  shall  tend  to  strengthen  and  estab- 
lish the  general  union  by  which  our  invaluable  ])rivileges  may  be  secured  and 
we  be  a  hai)py  people." 

The  sentiment  of  the  Presbytery  seemed   to  favor  the 
adoption  of  the  Constitution. 


CHAPTER    VI. 


The  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County  eontiuued. 

THE  growth  of  the  church  and  its  altered  conditions 
rendered  some  changes  in  its  constitution  a  necessity. 
The  Synod  of  1785  appointed  a  committee,  with  Dr.  Wither- 
spoon  at  its  head,  "  to  take  into  consideration  the  constitution 
of  the  church  of  Scotland  and  other  Protestant  churches,  and, 
agreeably  to  the  general  principles  of  Presbyterian  govern- 
ment, compile  a  system  of  general  rules  for  the  government 
of  the  Synod  and  the  several  Presbyteries  under  their  in- 
spection, and  the  people  in  their  communion,  and  to  make 
report  of  their  proceeding  herein  at  the  next  meeting  of 
Synod." 

On  the  same  day  an  overture  was  presented  for  a  division 
of  the  Synod  into  three  Synods  and  the  organization  of  the 
General  Assembly,  and  referred  for  consideration  to  the  next 
Synod.  The  committee  presented  a  report  to  Synod  of 
1786,  and  the  Book  of  Discipline  and  Government  were  re- 
ferred to  a  new  committee  composed  of  the  chairman  and  a 
portion  of  the  members  of  the  old  one,  with  directions  "  to 
digest  such  a  system  as  they  shall  think  to  be  accommodated 
to  the  state  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  America,"  and  to 
print  it  for  distribution  among  tlie  Presbyteries  in  order  that 
they  might  report  to  the  next  Synod  in  writing  "  their 
observations  on  the  said  Books  of  Government  and  Disci- 
pline." It  was  voted  that  there  should  be  three  or  more 
Synods  and  that  a  (General  Assembly  should  be  established, 
and  a  committee  was  appointed  to  draft  a  plan  for  the  carry- 
ing of  the  resolution  into  effect. 

Three  days  later  a  report  was  presented  making  certain 
changes  in  the  Presbyteries,  and  constituting  four  Synods 


CHANGES    IN    THE    CONSTITUTION.  49 

of  New  York  and  New  Jersey,  Philadelphia,  Virginia  and 
the  Carolinas,  and  a  General  Assembly  to  be  composed  of 
commissioners  from  the  Presbyteries.  The  recommenda- 
tion as  to  the  Presbyteries  was  adopted,  and  the  remainder 
of  the  report  referred  to  the  next  Synod. 

The  Presbytery  met  at  Mr,  Case's,  Nine  Partners,  May, 
1787.  There  were  present  Solomon  Mead,  Wheeler  Case, 
Ichabod  Lewis,  John  Davenport,  Silas  Constant,  and  Elder 
Cornelius  Plumfrey.  The  proposed  changes  in  the  constitu- 
tion were  considered.  The  division  into  four  Synods  was 
approved.  With  respect  to  Form  of  Government  and  Book 
of  Discipline  we  have  the  following  criticisms  : 

"With  respect  to  the  following  articles,  beginning  at  the  13th  page  at  the 
following  line  '  and  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  Presbyteries  to  report  to  the  Synod 
licensures '  down  to  the  conclusion  of  the  section,  the  article  p.  14,  which 
directs  Presbyteries  to  establish  grammar  schools  within  their  bounds,  etc.,  the 
article  p.  21,  which  respects  the  election  and  ordination  of  bishojis  or  pastors, 
the  article  p.  28,  which  respects  instalment  distinct  from  ordination,  the  article 
p.  38,  which  respects  moderators,  the  Presbytery  are  unanimously  of  ojjinion 
that  Presbyteries  have  a  discretionary  power  with  respect  to  the  observance  of 
l)articular  mode  of  procedure  in  the  articles  above  referred  to.  The  Presby- 
tery attended  to  the  article  which  speaks  of  ruling  elders  and  report  as  their 
sentiment  that  churches  should  be  left  at  liberty  to  act  agreeable  to  their  own 
sentiments  with  resj^ect  to  the  mode  of  government  referred  to. 

"  With  resjjcct  to  the  section  in  which  the  ordinances  in  a  ]3articular  church 
are  enumerated,  we  cannot  see  the  propriety  of  calling  collections  for  the  poor 
and  other  necessities  of  the  church  an  ordinance  in  the  church ;  and  as  we 
suppose  discipline  to  be  an  ordinance  in  the  church,  we  view  its  not  being 
mentioned  in  the  enumeration  to  be  an  omission.  With  respect  to  the  former 
paragraph  of  the  article,  which  speaks  of  the  congregational  assembly  or  judi- 
cature, usually  styled  the  church  session,  we  would  make  the  same  remarks  as 
were  made  respecting  the  article  which  speaks  of  ruling  elders. 

"With  respect  to  the  paragraph  which  enjoins  upon  ministers  to  keep  a 
record  of  marriages  and  deaths  we  except,  .as  in  particular  cases  Jthe  keeping 
of  such  records  would  be  attended  with  extreme  ditficulty,  but  chielly  because 
wc  view  such  injunction  not  to  be  warranted  by  Scripture.  In  the  article, 
which  respects  the  Presbyterial  Assembly,  we  except  against  those  paragraphs, 
which  bear  the  aspect  of  justifying  the  interference  of  Presbyteries  in  the  in- 
ternal government  of  the  church,  when  no  particular  reference  is  made  to 
these  bodies. 

"  Presbytery  attended  to  the  article  which  respects  a  general  council,  and 
after  giving  it  as  mature  deliberation  as  their  time  would  admit,  found  them- 
selves not  rii)e  for  decision,  are,  therefore,  obliged  not  to  be  explicit  in  giving 
their  sentiments  on  the  subject.  Presbytery  attended  to  the  article,  which  re- 
7 


50  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    DUTCHESS    COUNTY. 

spects  licensing  of  candidates  or  probationers  to  preach  the  Gospel,  and  report 
that  thev  unanimously  concur  in  sentiment  with  the  committee  of  Synod,  that 
a  liberal  education  with  reference  to  the  work  of  the  ministry  is  highly  advan- 
tageous, and  at  the  same  time  unanimously  think  that  to  require  that  no  candi- 
date shall  receive  a  license,  until  he  hath  completed  the  usual  course  of  academic 
studies,  is  to  require  too  much ;  that  many,  who  have  not  gone  through  a  course 
of  learning,  have  shone  with  distinguished  luster  in  the  American  churches  at 
different  ]5eriods,  that  numbers  now  in  the  ministry,  not  educated  as  above 
mentioned,  appear  qualified  for  eminent  usefulness  in  the  vineyard  of  our  Lord. 
They  further  think  that  with  respect  to  examining  candidates  for  the  Gospel 
ministry,  who  have  received  a  diploma  of  Bachelor  or  Master  of  Arts  from 
some  college  or  university  on  their  knowledge  of  the  Latin  and  original 
languages,  each  Presbytery  should  have  a  discretionary  power  with  respect  to 
the  observance  of  any  particular  mode  of  conduct  in  the  particulars  now  re- 
ferred to. 

"With  respect  to  the  article  on  missions,  the  Presbytery  are  unanimously 
of  the  opinion  that  the  Presbyteries  without  applying  to  the  general  council 
have  and  of  right  ought  to  have  a  discretionary  power  to  introduce  into  the 
ministry  and  send  missionaries  to  any  part,  to  plant  churches,  or  to  supply 
vacancies,  as  the  state  of  the  churches  and  interest  of  religion  may  require. 
"  With  respect  to  the  article,  p.  43,  which  points  out  the  treatment  due  to 
such  gross  offenders,  as  will  not  be  reclaimed  by  the  private  or  public  admo- 
nitions of  the  church,  the  Presbytery  are  of  the  opinion  that  churches  have  a 
discretionary  power  to  observe  that  line  of  conduct,  which  is  in  their  view 
agreeable  to  the  sacred  oracles. 

"  With  respect  to  the  article,  p.  43.  which  directs  that  all  processes  in  cases 
of  scandal  shall  commence  within  the  space  of  one  year  after  they  have  be- 
come known  to  the  officers  of  the  church,  after  which  the  judicature  shall  not 
receive  any  complaint,  on  that  subject  Presbytery  are  of  the  opinion  that  no 
particular  term  of  time  ought  to  be  specified. 

"  In  the  case  referred  to  in  article,  p.  43,  section  i8,  which  directs  that  all 
processes,  etc.,  Presbytery  are  of  the  opinion  that  the  decision  of  the  Presby- 
tery should  be  final  without  any  appeal  to  a  higher  judicature,  as  well  in  those 
cases  where  exceptions  are  made  to  the  mode  of  trial  as  in  others.  With  re- 
si)ect  to  the  article,  p.  45,  section  5,  which  directs  that  the  jirosecutor  must  be 
previously  warned,  etc..  Presbytery  are  of  the  opinion  that  this  article  cannot 
by  any  means  be  admitted." 

These  criticism.s  show  a  very  decided  leaning  towards 
Congregationalism.  They  remind  us  of  the  history  of  the 
Associated  Presbyteries,  and  we  recognize  the  opinions, 
possibly  also  the  composition,  of  Silas  Constant. 

John  Davenport  was  the  only  member  of  the  Presbytery 
at  the  Synod  of  1787.  The  criticisms  of  the  various  Pres- 
byteries were  read ;  also,  the  propo.sed  Form  of  Govern- 
ment and   Book  of  Discipline  i)aragrai)h   by  paragraph.      It 


PROPOSED    KEORGAXIZATION.  5  I 

was  ordered  that  looo  copies  be  printed  for  distribution 
among  the  Presbyteries  and  churches.  The  Synod  of  1788, 
after  careful  consideration,  adopted  them  ;  also,  the  Confes- 
sion of  Faith  and  Larger  Catechism  as  amended,  the  revised 
Directory  of  Worship  and  the  Shorter  Catechism.  The 
Synod  was  divided  as  proposed  in  1786,  and  a  General 
Assembly  establislied. 

We  have  already  called  attention  to  the  feebleness  of  the 
bond  which  bound  many  of  the  churches  to  the  Presbytery, 
They  could  hardly  be  said  to  be  under  its  watch  and  care. 
Most  of  the  churches  were  organized  by  the  early  settlers 
who  came  from  New  I^ngland,  and  were  without  a  bench  of 
elders.  Doubtless  North  Salem  and  the  West  Society  of 
Fredericksburgh,  and  others  in  Dutchess  County  applied  to 
the  Presbytery  for  supplies  from  the  motive  of  convenience, 
the  line  between  Presbyterianism  and  Congregationalism 
not  then  being  sharply  drawn.  Some  applied  but  once ; 
others  only  a  few  times.  Many  of  these  churches  naturally 
turned  to  the  associations  of  Connecticut  and  Massachu- 
setts for  preaching,  and  their  connection  with  the  Pres- 
bytery ceases.  The  war  scattered  two  congregations.  When 
the  changes  in  the  constitution  were  made,  the  rolls  con- 
tained the  names  of  seven  ministers,  and  apparently  eleven 
churches. 

At  its  own  request,  the  name  of  the  Presbytery  was 
changed  to  that  of  Dutchess  by  the  Synod  of  New  York 
and  New  Jersey  in  1789.  In  1791  an  overture  was  received 
from  the  Synod  with  respect  to  necessary  changes  in 
the  Presbyteries,  asking  for  suggestions.  The  Presbytery 
mentioned  the  smallness  of  number  of  its  ministers,  dimin- 
ished recently  by  the  death  of  Mr.  Case,  and  requested  that 
Messrs.  Nathan  Ker,  John  Close,  and  Andrew  King  of  the 
Presbytery  of  New  York,  and  pastors  respectively  of  the 
churches  of  Goshen,  New  Windsor,  and  Walkill  in  Orange 
County,  be  transferred  to  them.  A  similar  overture  was 
received  from  the  S\nod  the  following  year.  The  Pres- 
bytery expressed   the  wish   to   remain   as  they  were.     The 


52  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    DUTCHESS    COUNTY. 

next  proposition,  emanating  from  one  of  its  own  members, 
was  that  it  be  annexed  to  the  Presbytery  of  New  York. 
This  was  decided  later  in  the  negative. 

The  Presbytery  was  being  rapidly  dei>leted.  Ichabod 
Lewis  had  died,  Samuel  Mills  had  joined  the  Anabaptists, 
Blackleach  Burritt  had  removed  to  Vermont,  John  Daven- 
port had  been  dismissed.  The  Associated  Westchester 
Presbytery  had  been  organized,  and  Silas  Constant  had 
withdrawn  to  it.  With  him  went  the  churches  at  Crompond 
and  Red  Mills.  The  Sing  Sing  church  had  preceded  them 
into  the  same  body.  One  new  member,  Methuselah  Bald- 
win, had  been  added,  and  one,  Benjamin  Judd,  had  been  dis- 
missed, leaving  only  three  ministers  on  the  roll.  Eight 
churches  were  still  connected  with  the  Presbytery,  —  Salem, 
Union,  Pleasant  Valley,  Bedford,  Franklin,  Rumbout,  Pitts- 
burgh, and  Pound  Ridge.  Of  these,  all  except  the  first  three 
were  without  pastors. 

Application  was  made  to  the  Synod  in  1794  for  the 
transfer  of  Messrs.  Nathan  Ker  of  Goshen,  Andrew  King 
of  Walkill,  and  Jonathan  Freeman  of  Hopewell  and  Deer 
Park,  all  of  the  Presbytery  of  New  York.  October  22, 
1795,  the  Presbytery  was  dissolved,  and  a  new  one,  that  of 
Hudson,  erected.  Practically  the  request  was  granted,  for 
the  persons  named  with  John  Joline,  pastors  of  the  churches 
of  Florida  and  Warrick,  were  joined  with  them.  The  dissolu- 
tion, evidently,  was  scarcely  more  than  a  means  of  securing 
a  change  of  name  to  represent  its  enlarged  territory.  The 
new  body  covered  a  large  portion  of  the  Valley  of  the 
Hudson. 

It  has  been  stated  that  the  cause  of  the  dissolution  of  the 
Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County  was  the  organization  of  the 
Associated  Westchester  Presbytery.  The  weakness  of  the 
former  was  possibly  the  opportunity  of  the  latter.  It  must 
be  borne  in  mind  tliat  the  cause  assigned  in  the  minutes  for 
a  change  is  the  smallness  in  the  number  of  ministers;  no 
mention  is  made  of  the  loss  of  churches  by  transfer  to  that 
body.     One  minister  only  was  dismissed  to  it.     At  the  time 


BIOGRAPHICAT,    SKETCHES.  53 

of  the  dissolution,  the  Associated  Presbytery  had  more  min- 
isters on  its  roll,  but  fewer  churches. 

STATKD    CLERKS. 

Rev.  Chauncey  Graliain,  October  i8,  1763. 
"      Ichabod  Lewis,  October  12,  1774. 
"      Benjamin  Jiidd,  May  4,  1791. 
"      John  Minor,  May  8,  1794. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHES. 

ELISHA    KENT. 

Elisha  Kent  was  born  in  SufBeld,  Conn.,  in  1704.  He 
graduated  at  Yale  in  1729.  He  was  ordained  and  installed 
pastor  of  the  church  of  Newtown,  Conn.,  in  1732.  He  was 
one  of  those  active  ministers  in  the  days  of  Edwards,  the 
Tennents,  and  Whitefield  who  objected  to  being  taxed  for 
the  support  of  ministers  of  whose  labors  they  did  not  ap- 
prove, or  in  other  words,  of  the  then  existing  Religious 
Establishment  of  Connecticut.  For  this  reason,  he  and  a 
number  of  his  people  removed  into  the  province  of  New 
York  in  1740  "to  be  delivered,"  as  he  said,  "from  the 
Lord's  spiritual."  He  took  an  active  part  in  organizing  con- 
gregations and  settling  difficulties  in  churches,  and  his  name 
is  found  in  the  records  of  Presbytery  and  Synod  as  ap- 
pointed to  some  of  the  most  difficult  and  important  duties. 
He  was  grandfather  of  Chancellor  James  Kent. 

The  following  contemporary  obituary  notice  from  the 
Connecticut  Journal  of  July,  1776,  is  of  interest  :  "Died  on 
the  17th  of  July,  1776,  after  a  short  confinement,  the  Rev. 
r>lisha  Kent,  of  Philippi,  New  York  government,  in  the 
72nd  year  of  his  age  and  the  42nd  of  his  ministry.  He 
was  endued  by  the  Author  of  all  good  gifts  with  a  sprightly 
genius,  a  quickness  of  invention  and  readiness  of  thought ; 
was  of  a  cheerful,  sociable,  compassionate,  hospitable  dis- 
position, furnishcti  with  a  rich  treasury  of  knowledge,  both 


54  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    DUTCHESS    COUNTY. 

human  and  divine,  which  being  sanctified  by  divine  grace, 
rendered  him  very  useful  in  life.  As  a  Christian,  he  excelled 
in  the  cardinal  grace  of  humility  ;  was  ever  inclined  to  think 
low  of  his  attainments  and  performances  ;  he  was  enriched 
with  many  ministerial  gifts  and  qualifications  ;  with  an  un- 
common faculty  to  prevent  and  heal  difficulties  ;  was  much 
improved  and  greatly  serviceable  in  councils  ;  but  'tis  well 
known  to  all  his  ju'licious  acquaintances  that  he  excelled 
more  especially  as  to  pulpit  talents.  His  composition  was 
truly  good,  his  matter  sound  and  instructive,  his  manner  of 
address  solemn  and  serious :  he  delivered  with  a  pathos  be- 
coming the  importance  of  the  subject  —  he  was  a  faithful, 
painful  [painstaking],  profitable,  searching  preacher,  and  as 
such  was  exceeded  by  but  few;  and  to  human  appearance, 
it  pleased  God  to  improve  him  as  an  instrument  of  gather- 
ing many  lost  souls  to  Christ." 

JOHN    SMITH. 

John  Smith  was  born  in  England,  May  5,  1702.  He 
came  with  his  father  to  New  York,  where  the  family  became 
identified  with  the  little  band  of  Presbyterians  who  wor- 
shiped in  the  City  Hall.  Jonathan  Edwards,  during  the 
eighteen  months  he  preached  to  this  flock,  made  his  home 
with  Mr.  Smith.  A  friendship  sprang  up  between  the  youth- 
ful preacher  of  nineteen  and  John,  then  twenty.  They 
communed  together  about  the  things  of  God.  John  Smith 
graduated  at  Yale  in  1727.  May  i^,  1729,  h.'  was  ordained 
by  the  Fairfield  Association.*  We  know  nothing  of  his 
labors  during  the  next  thirteen  years.  In  1742,  he  took 
charge  of  the  congregations  of  Rye  and  White  Plains. 
Dec.  30,  he  was  installed  by  a  council  of  ministers  of  the 
Fairfield  East  Con.sociation  ;  1752  he  united  with  the  Pres- 
bytery of  New  York;  May  28,  1763,  he  was  transferred  by 
the  Synod  to  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County. 

In  the  same  year  the  oversight  of  the  new  enterprise  at 
Sing  Sing  was  added  to  his  other  duties.     In  1769,  Ichabod 

*The  Presbytery  of  N.  Y.,  p.  155. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    SKETCHES.  55 

Lewis  was  ordained  by  the  Presbytery  and  became  his  C(j1- 
league  in  the  care  of  the  churches  of  White  Plains  and  Sing 
Sing.  During  his  pastorate  Mr.  Smith  also  practiced  medi- 
cine. He  seems  "to  have  been  "widely  known  and  held  in 
high  esteem  by  the  Synod."  Thus  the  records  .show,  that  in 
1735,  the  Rev.  'John  Smith  of  Rye'  was  one  of  a  committee 
to  visit  the  Church  at  Jamaica,  with  reference  to  the  pro- 
posed removal  of  their  pastor,  Mr.  Bostwick,  to  New  York. 
His  associates  were  President  Burr,  Gilbert  and  William 
Tennent,  and  other  distinguished  men.  In  1754,  when  Gil- 
bert Tennent  was  sent  to  England,  with  Pres.  Davies,  to 
solicit  funds  for  the  College  of  Nev^^  Jersey,  Mr.  Smith  was 
requested  by  the  Synod  to  supply  his  pulpit  for  four  Sab- 
baths. But  the  most  important  service,  probably,  which  he 
was  called  upon  to  render  to  the  church  in  this  way,  took 
place  in  1766,  when  he  was  appointed  one  of  the  commis- 
sioners from  the  Synod  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  to  meet 
delegates  from  the  consociated  churches  of  Connecticut,  for 
the  purpose  of  initiating  and  maintaining  a  friendly  corre- 
spondence between  those  bodies.  Mr.  Smith's  associates  in 
this  duty  were  Dr.  Alison,  Dr.  Rodgers,  William  Tennent, 
John  Blair,  and  others.*  "Worn  out  with  various  labors" 
he  "fell  asleep  in  Jesus"  Feb.  26,  1771,  and  lies  buried  in 
the  churchyard  at  White  Plains.  The  inscription  upon  his 
tombstone  designates  him  as  the  "  first  ordained  minister  of 
the  Presbyterian  persuasion  in  Rye  and  White  Plains." 

SAMUEL    SACKET. 

Samuel  Sacket  was  born  in  Newtown,  L.  I.,  in  L712  or  13. 
He  was  educated  by  Rev.  Samuel  Pumroy,  the  pastor  of  the 
chureh.  He  was  licensed  by  the  Presbytery  of  New  Bruns- 
wick, Oct.,  1 74 1,  and  sent  May  29,  1742,  as  a  missionary  to 
the  northern  Westchester.  He  was  ordained  Oct.  13,  1742, 
and  installed  the  following  year  as  pastor  of  the  churches  of 
Crompond.(yorktown),  and  Bedford.  The  pastoral  connec- 
tion with  the  former  was  dissolved  June  15,  1749.     He  was 


*  Baird's  History  of  Rye,  p.  334. 


56  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    DUTCHESS    COUNTY. 

dismissed  from  the  Presbytery  of  New  Brunswick  May  17, 
1750,  and  May  22,  175 1,  he  was  received  by  that  of  Suffolk. 
Changed  views  on  the  subject  of  baptism  led  to  trouble  at 
Bedford,  and  at  his  own  request  he  was  released  April  4,  1753. 
The  same  year  he  received  and  accepted  a  call  to  the  church 
at  Crompond.  April  i,  1760,  he  was  released  on  account  of 
want  of  support.  He  was  recalled  Oct.  28,  1761,  and  re- 
mained there  until  his  death,  June  5,  1784,  at  the  age  of 
seventy-two  years.  His  tombstone  bears  this  inscription  : 
"  He  was  a  judicious,  faithful,  laborious,  and  successful  min- 
ister of  the  Gospel."  1763  he  had  been  transferred  to  the 
Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County.  Later,  for  some  reason,  he 
became  dissatisfied  and  seceded.  He  came  from  the  Pres- 
bytery of  New  Brunswick  where  Gilbert  Tennent  was  the 
ruling  spirit.  He  belonged  to  the  "  new  lights,"  who  were 
evangelical  and  pious  men.  Their  preaching  was  earnest, 
"but  often  bitter  and  denunciatory."  They  made  use  of 
what  were  called  new  measures.  His  zeal  earned  him  the 
reputation  of  being  "  one  of  the  most  enthusiastic  Methodists." 
Dr.  Forsyth,  late  chaplain  at  West  Point,  writes —  "He  was 
never  a  good  Presbyterian.  He  was  rather  a  Congregation- 
alist  in  sentiment.  He  was  a  man  of  a  restless  turn,  and 
gave  the  Presbytery  no  little  trouble."  The  history  of  the 
Yorktown  Church  furnishes  no  evidence  of  Congregational 
preferences.  During  the  Revolutionary  struggle  he  was  an 
ardent  patriot. 

SOLOMON    MEAD. 

Solomon  Mead's  native  place  is  not  known.  He  grad- 
uated at  Yale  in  1748  with  Bishop  Seabury  and  President 
Daggett  He  was  ordained  and  installed  at  South  Salem, 
May  20,  1752,  by  a  council  composed  for  the  most  part  of 
Congregational  ministers  from  Connecticut.  May  13,  1800, 
the  pastoral  relation  was  dissolved  on  account  of  the  infirm- 
ities of  age.  The  congregation  voted  him  a  pension  of  $100 
and  firewood.  He  spent  the  remainder  of  his  days  with  the 
people  to  whom   he   had  ministered,  and  fell  asleep  Sept.  4, 


BIOGRAPHICAL    SKETCHES,  57 

1813,  at  the  a<^c  of  eighty-six  years,  eight  months,  and  two 
days,  after  a  ministry  of  more  than  sixty  years.  During 
these  years  he  had  baptized  912  infants  and  adults,  married 
666  couples,  and  attended  328  burials. 

JOSEPH     I'ECK. 

Of  Joseph  Peck  we  know  but  little.  He  was  graduated 
at  Princeton  in  1756.  Mar.  29,  1758,  he  was  licensed  by  the 
Fairfield  East  Consociation.  He  was  the  first  pastor  of  the 
Second  Church  in  "  Phillips  Precinct,"  now  Patterson.  Feb. 
8,  1769,  at  his  own  request,  on  account  of  inadequate  sup- 
port, the  pastoral  relation  was  dissolved. 


CHAPTER   VII. 


The  Associated   WestcJiester  Presbytery. 

FOR  the  origin  of  the  movement  out  of  which  grew  the 
Associated  Presbyteries  we  must  look  to  the  Presby- 
tery of  New  York.  In  Oct.,  1779,  Jacob  Green,  pastor  for 
thirty  years  of  the  church  at  Hanover,  N.  J  ,  withdrew  from 
that  body  because  of  certain  actions  of  tlie  Synod.  In  his 
letter  of  withdrawal  "he  objects  to  their  authoritative 
method  of  'ordering,  appointing,  and  requiring,  instead  of 
recommending  and  desiring.'  He  objects  to  their  assump- 
tion of  legislative  power,  by  enacting  laws  which  bind  the 
consciences  of  men,  which  he  holds  to  be  against  the  great 
Protestant  principle  '  that  Christ  has  left  no  legislative  power 
in  the  church.'  He  objects  to  the  appointment  by  Synod  of 
ministers  to  labor  in  distant  points  of  the  church  without 
asking  their  consent,  and  censuring  them  severely  if  they 
do  not  comply  with  their  appointments  ;  also  in  ordering 
(not  desiring)  them  to  take  up  contributions  for  certain  ob- 
jects ;  claiming  the  power  to  liberate  ministers  from  their 
charges  without  the  consent  of  the  people.  He  objects  to 
the  order  that  candidates  shall  study  a  year  after  graduation 
before  they  can  be  licensed,  which  he  holds  to  be  a  double 
imposition,  —  requiring  a  degree,  and  one  year's  study  be- 
fore they  can  preach.  He  objects  to  the  order  requiring 
licentiates  to  write  out  in  full  their  sermons  and  show  them 
to  some  minister  before  they  are  at  liberty  to  preach  them, 
which  he  thinks  takes  away  the  liberty,  and  in  some  in- 
stances contradicts  the  judgments  and  conscience  of  the 
candidate.  He  objects  to  the  Synod's  enjoining  upon  min- 
isters the  keeping  of  registers  of  marriages,  births,  and  bap- 


THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  MORRIS  COUNTY.  59 

tisms,  not  only  on  account  of  the  authoritative  way  in  which 
it  is  ordered,  but  because  he  considers  it  impossible  for  any 
minister  to  know  of  all  the  births  in  his  congregation.  He 
objects  to  the  use  by  Synod  of  the  authoritative  word  'en- 
join' instead  of  'advise'  when  directing  ministers  not  to 
read  their  sermons  when  they  preach.  In  conclusion,  Mr. 
Green  objects  to  the  reception  of  the  Westminster  Confes- 
sion of  Faith,  Catechisms,  and  Directory,  without  the  liberty 
to  make  exception  or  explanation,  and  the  injunction  to  teach 
and  preach  according  to  them." 

Rev.  Joseph  Grover,  pastor  of  the  Parsippany  Church, 
N.  ].,  withdrew  with  Mr.  Green.  Rev.  Amzi  Lewis,  pastor 
of  the  church  at  Florida,  N.  Y.,  and  Rev.  Ebenezer  Brad- 
ford of  Succasanna,  N.  J.,  followed  their  example  on  May 
3,  1780.  The  Presbytery  of  New  York  sent  committees  to 
the  churches,  to  which  these  brethren  ministered,  to  explain 
to  them  Presbyterianism,  and  to  enquire  whether  they  pro- 
posed to  go  with  their  pastors  and  sever  their  connection 
with  the  Presbytery.  There  is  no  evidence  that  any  of  them 
withdrew. 

The  four  ministers  who  seceded,  on  May  3,  1 780,  formed 
themselves  into  a  body  which  they  styled  "The  Presbytery 
of  Morris  County,"' afterwards  known  as  "  The  Associated 
Presbytery  of  Morris  County."  According  to  their  consti- 
tution, two  stated  meetings  were  to  be  held  each  year.  Each 
church  in  their  connection  was  authorized  to  send  two  elders 
or  lay  delegates.  No  jurisdiction  was  claimed  over  the 
churches,  to  which  advice  and  assistance  was  to  be  given 
when  asked  for.  Rules  were  not  authoritative,  and  all 
agreements  were  alterable  at  pleasure.  They  also  consti- 
tuted themselves  a  society  for  promoting  learning  and 
religion.  May  30,  1787,  they  obtained  an  act  of  incorpora- 
tion from  the  New  Jersey  legislature  under  the  title  of 
"The  trustees  of  the  Society  in  Morris  County,  instituted 
for  the  promotion  of  learning  and  religion."  A  fund  was 
secured  by  bequests  and  collections. 

Silas  Constant,  who  had  been  ordained  as  an  evangelist 


6o  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

by  the  Presbytery  of  Morris  County  at  Roxbury,  May  29, 
1783,  was  invited  in  November,  1785,  to  supply  the  pulpit  of 
the  Hanover  (now  Yorktown)  Church  for  one  year.  One 
year  later  he  was  called  to  be  the  pastor  and  installed  by  a 
council  composed  of  members  of  Presbyteries  of  Morris 
County  and  Dutchess  County.  Within  a  few  months  after 
his  coming  to  Hanover,  he  began  to  teach  the  peculiar 
tenets  of  the  body  to  which  he  belonged.  The  "Church 
Records"  kept  by  himself  contain  the  following  entries:  — 

"March  8th,  1786,  the  Church  met.  Agreed  to  take  up 
A  number  of  Questions  relative  to  the  Church  of  Christ, 
and  inquire  after  light  respecting  them. 

"Question  ist.  Why  ought  Christian  Brethren  to  im- 
body  into  A  visible  Church  .'' 

"The  reasons  given. 

"  Quest.  2nd.     What  is  A  Christian  Church  .'' 

"  Ans.  A  number  of  visible  Christians  united  together 
in  the  profession  of  the  faith  of  the  gospel,  and  Covenanted 
to  walk  in  the  ordinances  of  Christ. 

"  3rd.     What  are  the  qualifications  of  Church  members  .'* 

"  Ans.  A  visible  profession  of  saving  faith  in  Christ, 
and  A  life  of  conformity  to  the  gospel. 

"  March  24th.     Church  met  etc. 

"4th  Is  every  Body  of  Christians  that  are  incor- 
porated a  Distinct  Church  according  to  the  word  of  God .'' 

"  Ans.  Every  church  of  Christ  that  is  properly  fur- 
nished with  officers  is  Complete,  and  may  properly  attend  to 
all  cases  for  their  own  edification  and  purity.  Yet  the 
Church  ought  to  call  in  advice  when  needed, 

"  5th.  What  officers  has  Christ  appointed  in  His 
churches  ? 

"Ans.     Elders  and  Deacons. 

"March  31st  the  Church  met  etc. 

"Quest.  6th  What  are  duties  incumbent  on  church 
members  in  relation  to  each  other.'' 

"  Ans.  to  j:)ray  for  each  other,  and  to  exhort  and 
reprove  according  to  the  Laws  of  Christ. 


ASSOCIATED    FRESBYTERIANISM.  6 1 

"  7th  How  ought  they  to  treat  an  open  offending 
Brother  ? 

"  Ans.  They  ought  to  take  the  rules  of  Christ  to  bring 
him  to  repentance,  Mat.  i8. 

"  8th.  May  the  Church  put  of  and  Suspend  cases  of 
Discipline  for  Scandalous  conduct  before  the  offender  is  re- 
claimed or  excommunicated  .-' 

"  Ans.  Due  moderation  and  Christian  forbearance  must 
be  observed,  but  the  Subject  must  not  be  neglected. 

"  9th.  How  ought  the  Church  to  treat  an  Excommuni- 
cated Brother  .-* 

"  Ans.  They  ought  to,  universally  Bear  testimony  against 
his  conduct,  and  to  withdraw  the  usual  testimonies  of 
friendship. 

"Quest.  loth  Is  there  any  Such  thing  as  Suspension, 
short  of  excommunication  ? 

"  Ansered  in  the  negative, 

"  I  ith  By  whom  is  Sentance  of  Excommunication  to 
be  Declared  &  in  what  manner .'' 

"Ans.  by  the  pastor  or  Elder  with  the  concurring 
voice  of  the  whole  Church. 

"Concluded  with  prayer. 

"Apr.  28.     Church  met  etc. 

"  1 2th.     In  what  cases  ought  A  church  to  call  A  counsel  ? 

"  Ans.  In  all  cases  of  Difficulty  which  Cannot  be  Setled 
without. 

"  13th.  Are  the  Church  Bound  to  receive  the  advice 
of  A  counsel  in  all  Cases  as  Decisive  ? 

"Ans.  The  Church  ought  not  to  take  the  Counsel  for 
her  rule,  but  ought  to  examine  the  ground  of  there  opinion 
and  advice,  with  Due  respect  to  there  Judment. 

"  14th  Is  it  right  for  one  Brother  to  Sue  another  be- 
fore the  Civil  magistrate .-' 

"Ans.  It  is  not  right  to  sue  A  Brother  in  ordinary 
cases. 

"Concluded  with  prayer." 

The  "Records"  indicate  that,  after  Mr.  Constant's  com- 


62  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

ing,  the  Session  ceased  to  be  the  governing  authority.  It 
was  the  church  that  met  and  examined  candidates  for  mem- 
bership ;  "the  church  conversed  on  the  subject  of  disci- 
pHne "  and  appointed  a  committee  to  wait  on  an  erring 
brother ;  the  church  declared  by  vote  that  he  [an  offender] 
should  be  no  longer  owned  as  a  member  in  their  com- 
munion "  ;  "  the  church  proceeded  to  excommunicate  him  [a 
person  charged  with  theft]  from  their  fellowship."  There 
is  corroborative  evidence  in  abundance  from  independent 
sources,  which  will  be  presented  further  on. 

Amzi  Lewis,  one  of  the  original  members  of  the  Presby- 
tery of  Morris  County,  and  its  clerk,  removed  from  Florida, 
Orange  County,  N.  Y.,  to  North  Salem  in  1787,  where  he 
took  charge  of  the  Academy  and  also  acted  as  pastor  of  the 
church.  1 79 1,  we  find  John  Townley  at  Greenburgh  (Elms- 
ford),  and  John  Cornwall  (sometimes  spelled  Cornwell), 
at  Stanford  (Nine  Partners),  Dutchess  County,  N.  Y. 
Whether  these  men  adopted  Mr.  Constant's  methods  of  prop- 
agating Associated  Presbyterianism,  we  do  not  know.  It 
certainly  was  not  necessary  in  the  churches  to  which  Messrs. 
Lewis  and  Townley  ministered.  To  many,  perhaps  to  a 
majority,  of  our  congregations  this  form  of  Presbyterianism 
was  acceptable. 

In  the  judgment  of  the  Morris  County  Presbytery, 
Westchester  and  Dutchess  offered  a  promising  field.  At  a 
session  of  that  body  held  Oct.,  1791,  the  following  minute 
was  adopted  : 

"As  the  members  of  this  Presbytery  are  much  scattered;  and  a  miiiibcr  of 
them  are  so  situated  in  counties  of  Dutchess  and  Westchester  in  the  .State  of 
New  Yoriv,  that  they  may  conveniently  associate  and  form  a  Presbytery;  and 
as  there  appears  to  be  an  opening  for  such  a  body  and  a  prospect  of  its  useful- 
ness in  those  parts,  it  is  agreed,  that  Messrs.  Lewis,  Cornwall,  Townly,  and 
Constant,  members  of  this  Presbytery,  have  the  free  consent  and  approbation 
of  this  Presbytery,  to  unite  together  and  form  themselves  into  an  associated 
Presbytery,  by  the  name  of  Westchester  Presbytery,  for  the  purpose  of  pro- 
moting the  objects  of  this  Presbytery  in  those  parts;  And  that  they  may  prove 
and  recommend  candidates  for  the  gospel  ministry  and  ordain  them  when  they 
judge  it  expedient  and  perform  all  other  prcsbyterial  acts  according  to  the 
original  design  of  this  associated  jiresbytery.  And  for  maintaining  and  pro- 
moting brotherly  union  and  connection  between  the  Presbyteries  and  insuring 


THE    CONSTITUTION.  63 

as  much  as  possible  their  mutual  assistance  the  following  Rules  were  agreed 
to,  viz. :  — 

"  I.  That  each  Presbytery  shall  be  equal  and  independent  on  each  other 
with  respect  to  all  their  presbyterial  transaction. 

"  2.  That  all  the  present  stated  members  of  this  Presbytery  shall  be  full 
members  of  each  Presbytery,  when  constituted,  and  may  when  it  is  convenient 
meet  with  each  other  in  all  presbyterial  business  as  full  members. 

"3.  That  all  the  jiresent  stated  members  of  this  Presbytery  shall  have  a 
right  to  continue  members  of  the  Society  for  promoting  learning  and  religion, 
and  while  they  are  such  shall  be  under  the  same  obligation  that  they  are  now 
under  to  attend  the  annual  meeting  of  the  said  Society. 

"4.  That  each  Presbytery  may  admit  members  as  they  please  who  shall 
have  all  the  rights  of  original  members  as  to  ecclesiastical  or  common 
presbyterial  business,  but  shall  not  be  members  of  the  Society  for  promoting 
learning  and  religion  unless  they  are  admitted  by  said  Society  at  some  regular 
meeting. 

"  5.  That  the  Presbytery  of  Morris  County  shall  not  transact  matters 
respecting  the  funds  of  the  Society  for  promoting  learning  and  religion  at  any 
other  meeting  except  their  stated  meeting  in  the  Fall  unless  a  meeting  of  the 
Society  be  called  and  notified  by  the  Moderator  according  to  the  stated  rules 
of  said  Society."* 

From  "  The  Constitution  and  Records  of  the  A.ssociated 
Westchester  Presbytery  "  we  learn  how  the  decision  of  the 
parent  organization  was  carried  into  effect  : 

"  Messrs.  Amzi  Lewis,  John  Cornwall,  and  John  Townley  Ministers  and 
Solomon  Close  and  John  Oakly  Delegates  met  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Amzi 
Lewis  January  3d  A.  D.  1792.  Messrs.  Abner  Benedict  and  Medad  Rogers 
and  Daniel  Marsh  being  present  were  invited  to  sit  with  them  in  Convention 
to  consult  with  ihem  upon  the  subject  above  mentioned.  —  After  which  Mr. 
Townley  was  chosen  Chairman  and  Mr.  Marsh  Clerk.  —  After  prayer  by  the 
Chairman  the  Convention  entered  upon  business. — The  importance  of  form- 
ing an  Associated  Presbytery  in  these  parts  was  considered  and  from  varic)us 
arguments  drawn  from  the  extent  of  the  Country  —  from  no  Presbytery  of  this 
kind  being  in  this  vicinity  —  and  from  the  duty  of  uniting  together  to  promote 
the  Redeemer's  cause  it  was  unanimously  agreed  that  the  good  of  the  Churches 
require  the  forming  of  a  Presbytery  upon  the  principles  above  mentioned.  — 
Accordingly  Messrs.  Amzi  Lewis,  John  Cornwall,  John  Townley,  Abner  Bene- 
dict, Medad  Rogers  and  Daniel  Marsh  with  the  approbation  of  the  Delegates, 
united  together  and  formed  themselves  into  a  Presbytery  by  the  name  of  the 
Associated  Westchester  Presbytery  and  unanimously  agreed  to  the  following 
articles  viz  — 

"  I.  That  the  Presbytery  will  ordinarily  meet  twice  in  a  year  antl  oftener  if 
it  appears  needful  to  consult  and  agree  upon  the  most  expedient  measures  to 


*The  Constitution  and  Records  of  the  Associated  Westchester  Presby- 
tery, pp.  I  and  2. 


64  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY, 

l^romotc  Rcligimi,  and  to  give  the  Churches  an  opportunity  to  apply  to  us  for 
the'advice  and  assistance  which  may  be  proper  for  an  Associated  Presbytery 
to  afford  them. 

"  2.  We  agree  to  invite  each  cliurch  to  send  a  Delegate  to  attend  this 
Tresbytery  at  each  session  and  join  with  us  in  our  endeavours  to  promote  the 
Redeemer's  Kingdom. 

"  3.  As  we  design  to  proceed  regularly  at  our  meetings  and  endeavour  to 
Ijromote  Religion,  we  agree  that  a  Moderator  shall  be  chosen  at  each  stated 
I'resbytery  and  a  Clerk  to  minute  the  most  material  transactions  ;  and  that  we 
will  begin  and  conclude  with  Prayer. 

"4.  We  agree  that  this  Presbytery  as  a  body  shall  never  assume  or  claim 
any  jurisdiction  over  the  Churches  or  authoritatively  intermeddle  with  their 
affairs. 

"  5.  That  this  body  will  be  ready  to  give  any  advice  or  other  assistance 
whenever  any  Church  or  individuals  make  projier  ai)i)lication  to  them. 

"6.  That  this  body  shall  have  a  right  to  admit  Ministers  as  stated  mem- 
bers by  a  majority  of  two  thirds  of  the  members  present  and  to  exclude  them 
by  a  bare  majority. 

"  7.  That  this  body  have  a  right  to  examine  for  their  satisfaction  any  per- 
son who  proposes  to  join  with  them  as  a  member. 

"8.  That  the  minutes  of  each  Session  shall  be  regularly  transcribed  in  a 
Book  and  kept  for  the  use  of  the  Presbytery. 

"9.  That  the  Presbytery  when  met  may  appoint  the  time  and  jjlace  of 
their  next  meeting  and  that  the  Moderator  may  with  the  advice  of  one  or 
more  members  call  a  Presbytery  on  any  special  (JCcasion."t^ 

The  above  extract  from  the  minutes  shows  that  three 
persons,  Abner  Benedict,  Medad  Rogers,  and  Daniel  Marsh, 
not  members  of  the  parent  body  but  evidently  in  sympathy 
with  them  in  their  views  of  church  polity,  were  present  at 
the  organization  of  the  Presbytery  and  took  part  in  the  pro- 
ceedings. Mr.  Constant  was  not  present  at  the  first  meet- 
insr,  but  was  at  the  next  held  in  the  Court  House  at  White 
Plains,  May  8,  1792,  and  was  enrolled. 

ROLL    OF    MINISTERS. 

Name.  Chlikcii.  Enrolled. 

1.  Amzi  Lewis,  North  Salem,  Jan.  3,  1792,  *Apr.  5,  rSig 

North  Stamford  (Ct.), 

2.  John  Cornwall,  Stanford  (N.  Y.),  "        "  *Mar.  10,  1812 

Cornwell  (Ct.), 


a     The  Constitution  and  Records,  pp.  2-4. 
*  Died. 


ROLL    OF    MINESTERS. 


65 


Name. 

Church. 

Enrolled. 

3- 

John  Townley,  P., 

{ 

Greenburgh, 

First  Congregational 

Jan.  3, 

,  1792.  *Mar.  I, 

1812 

New  York. 

S.  S., 

Red  Mills. 

4- 

Abner  Benedict,  S.  S., 
S.  S., 

North  Salem, 
Pound  Ridge. 

" 

"    tOct.  27, 

1801 

S- 

Mcdad  Rof^ers,  P.,       < 

New    Fairfield    South             „ 
.Society,  Ct., 

"     tjune  I, 

1819 

6. 

Daniel  Marsh,  P.,        j 

Poughkeepsie, 
Rumbout, 

'" 

"   jMay  13, 

1801 

7- 

Silas  Constant,  P., 

Crompond, 

May  8, 

1792,  *Mar.  22, 

1825 

8. 

Robert  Campbell,  P., 

Stillwater, 

May  15, 

1793.  t 

1796 

9- 

Jonas  Hickok,  S.  S., 

Red  Mills, 

Feb.  23, 

1796,  §May  15, 

1806 

10. 

David  Harrower,  P., 

Walton, 

Sept.  29, 

1796,  t  May  13, 

1800 

II. 

Allan  Blair,  P., 

s.  s., 
s.  s., 
s.  s., 

New  Hempstead, 
Middletown. 
Gilead. 
Red  Mills. 

June  28, 

1797,  *June  14, 

1829 

12. 

Jason  Perkjns, 

Oct.  2, 

1800,  |May  12, 

1813 

13- 

James  Barr,  H.  M. 
H.  M. 

(Georgia), 
(Tennessee). 

tOct.  I, 

1806 

14. 

Richard  Andrus,  S.  S., 

,  Pound  Ridge, 

May  II, 

1802,  jSept.  18, 

1822 

15- 

John  McNiece,  S.  S., 
S.  S., 

North  Salem, 
Franklin. 

May  12, 

1802,  tDec.  19, 

1808 

16. 

Stephen  Dodd,  S.  S., 
P., 
P.. 

Gilead  and  Red  Mills 
Salem  (Ct.). 
East  Haven  (Ct.). 

,  Sept.  28 

,  1803,  JMay  4, 

1820 

»7- 

Abel  Jackson, 

Middletown, 

May  9,  1 

:8o4,  tSept.  iS, 

1822 

18. 

Sylvanus  Haight,  S.  S., 

,  Somers, 

June  iS, 

1806,  J  Sept.  27, 

1808 

19. 

John  Barnet, 

Union,  Amenia, 

Sept.  27 

,  1808,  t 

1813 

20. 

Abraham  Purdv,  S.  S., 

S.  S., 

S.  s. 

,  Peekskill, 
,  North  Salem. 
,  Somers. 

Oct.  17, 

18 10,  *Aug.  7, 

1825 

21. 

Joel    Osborn,    S.    S.  1 
and  P.,                       \ 

•  Union, 

Sept.  26, 

181 1,  tMay  II, 

1814 

22. 

Abner  Brundage,  S.  S., 
S.  S, 
S.  S., 

Peekskill, 
Gilead. 
Franklin. 
Brookfield  (Ct.). 

May  16, 

18 1 6,  tApr.  26, 

1826 

23- 

John  R.  St.  John, 

May  16, 

1816,  t 

1820 

24. 

Jas.  N.  Austin,  S.  S., 

Gilead, 

" 

tjune  3, 

1818 

25. 

Samuel  N.  Phelps, 

Ridgefield  (Ct.), 

1S16 

26. 

Joseph  F.  C.  S.  Frev,  ( 

Independent,  New 
Y'ork  City, 

Apr.  15, 

1S18,  tOct.  17, 

1S21 

27- 

Ezra  H.  Day,  S.  S., 

Somers, 

June  3,  I 

818,  t 

1822 

28. 

John  G.  Lowe,  S.  S  , 

Pound  Ridge, 

|Namc  dropped. 

Nov.  II,  1819,  tApr.  26, 
§Demitted  the  ministr 

1S26 

♦Died.        tDismissed. 
9 

y- 

66  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

Name.  Church.  Enrolled. 

29.  Evan  Roberts,  May  3,  1820,  iSept.  17,  1822 

30.  John  White,  Tea.,  (Brooklyn),  May  2,  1820,  t  1825 

P.,  Monroe. 

31.  William  McLean,  "         "        |.Sept.  18,  1822 

32.  Enoch  Bouton,  H.  M.,  Jersey  City,  Oct.  5,  1820,  |                   1822 

33.  Hosea  Ball,  S.  S.,  Monroe,  Oct.  iS,  1821,  jjune  2,  1830 

H.  M.,         Highlands  (N.  Y.). 

34.  Edward  McLaughlin,  Oct.  18,  1821,  t  1824 
35    Isaac  Allerton,  S.  S.,     Gilead,                             May  i,  1823,  |Apr.  30,  1828 

36.  Rich'd  Waller  Knight,  June  29,  1825,  fSept.  27,  1827 

■r,      .  ,  T  or.        I  Cong.  Church,   York-         .,  ,, 

37.  Uaniel  Jones,  b.  b.,     >      .   '^      x-   ^r  ' 
■-"                                             )      town,  JN.  Y., 

38.  Israel  Hammond,  .Sept.  24,  1828,  tjune  2,  1830 

39.  Richard  N.  Dey,  Oct.  6,  1829,      t       "         " 

Doubtless  further  investigation  will  reveal  errors  in  the 
above  roll.  It  is  the  best  that  can  be  done  from  the  min- 
utes. It  seems  to  have  been  quite  common  for  ministers  to 
join  other  ecclesiastical  bodies  without  a  regular  dismission 
from  the  Presbytery.  This  doubtless  is  accounted  for,  in 
part,  by  the  inadequate  postal  arrangements  of  that  day, 
and  explains  the  large  number  of  names  dropped  from  the 
roll. 

ROLL    OF    CHURCHES. 

Name.  Pastors  and  .Stated  Supplies.  Term  of  Service. 

1.  North  Salem,  West.  Co.,  N.  Y.,  Amzi  Lewis,  S.  S  ,  1787-June  1795 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  1796-1799 

Samuel  N.  Phelps,  1800-1801  (?) 

John  McNiece,  S.  S.,  1801-1803  (.') 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,  1803,  '5,  and  '13 

Abraham  Purely,  S.  S.,  1815-1817 

Herman  Daggett,  S.  S.,  1817- 
David  Delevan,  S.  S. 

2.  Sing  Sing,  Sup.  by  Presbytery,*     1798-1802  and  1810 

Mt.  Pleasant,  West.  Co.,  N.  Y.,  Thomas  Jackson,  P.,  \  ^"S-    ^'  '^"- 

•"  '      '  )  Jan.    12,    1817 

,,,n-        /-  \    r>  i  Tan.    16,  i8i6- 

W.ll.am  Gray.  A.  P.,  j  J^^^   ,^;     ^g^g 

George  Bourne,  S.  S.,  1819-1822 

Richard  W.  Knight,  S.  S.,  1823 

Johnson,  S.  S.,  1824-1825 


Supplies  appointed.         t  Dismissed.         |  Name  dropped. 


ROLL    OF    CHURCHES.  6/ 

Name.  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies.  Term  of  Ser\-ice. 


Crompond,  Silas  Constant,  P.,  i7S6-Mar.  2 

Yorktown,  West.  Co.,  N.  Y.,    Daniel  Jones,  S.  S.,  1825- 

Ind.  Presb.  or  Cong.  Church,    Grittith  H.  Griffith,  S.  S.,  1828- 

Wm.  Albert  Hyde,  P.,       Jan.  2,  1833- 

Josephus  B.  Loring,  S.  S.,  1838- 

Samuel  White,  S.  S.,  1842- 


J.  B.  Stoddard,  S.  S.,  1844-1S46  (.' 


Josephus  B.  Loring,  S.  S.,  1846  (.^)- 

J.  H.  Thomas,  S.  S.,  1849- 

Amzi  Benedict,  S.  S.,  '855- 

G.  W.  McMillan,  S.  S.,  1857- 

4.  Red     Mills,    Dutchess    (later  {  r.        i-  j  u    u      u  -.       * 
Putnam)  Co.,  N.  Y.,  }  Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 

Jonas  Hickok,  S.  S.,  I793- 

Stephen  Dodd,  S.  S.,  1803- 

Herman  Daggett,  S.  S.,  i8io- 

John  Townley,  S.  S., 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 

Allan  Blair,  S.  S.,  Jan.  i,  1813- 

B.  Y.  Morse,  S.  S.,  1S2S- 

K.  Greenburgh  (Elmsford),  West.  )  i  .     t-        1        c    c  „    ov 

Co.,  NY.,  \  J        Townley,  S.  S.,  1792  (?)- 

„  ..         p  {  Mav   8,    r 

j  May    13, 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*    1797,  1800- 

Thomas  G.  Smith,  S.  S.,  1812- 

6.  Stamford,  Dutchess  Co.,  N.  Y.,  John  Cornwall,  P.,  -Mar.  10,  18 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 

7.  Po'keejjsie,  "  "  Daniel  Marsh,  i79i-()ct.  i, 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*    1796,  1797, 
"  "  *  1800- 

8.  Cornwall,  Litchfield  Co.,  Ct.,       John  Cornwall,  1790- 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  iSoo- 

9.  Gilead,    Dutchess    (now    Put-  )  .1  <•  * 

nam)  Co.,  N.  Y.,  ) 

Stephen  Dodd,  S.  S.,         iSo2-July  15 

Herman  Daggett,  S.  S.,  1810- 

Allan  Blair,  S.  S.,  1812- 

James  N.  Austin,  S.  S.,  181 5- 

Abner  Brundage,  S.  S.,  iSiS- 

Isaac  Allerton,  S.  S.,  1823- 

Asahel  Bronson,  S.  S.,       <  1'      • 

B.  y.  Morse,  S.  S.,  1828- 

10.  First  Independent,  N.  Y.  City,    John  Townley, 

T  U     TT     /-       L-       T7  T1  i    Aur.      I?,     I818- 

Joseph  F.  C.  b.  Frey,  P.,  j      ^^^^^^^^^  ,53, 

11.  Rose  Street,  New  York  City. 


.25 

828 

832 
838 
84 1 
S43 


S49 
SS4 
856 
864 

793 
802 
810 
812 
8ri 
S12 
827 
S29 

79S 

98- 
800 
802 
820 

2(?) 
812 
800 
798 
S03 

?) 
S02 

S02 


10 
812 

S13 
816 

Sji 
824 

24- 

7 

829 

Sio 


*  Supplies  appointed. 


68 


THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 


Name.  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies. 

North  Stamford,  Fairfield  Co.,  J    .       .  ^       •     r. 
p.  >  Amzi  Lewis,  P., 


Term  of  Service. 
June  17,  1795- 
Apr.  5,  1819 
1819 


13- 


New  Marlborough,  Ulster 
Co.,  N.  Y., 


Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 

[  Abel  Jackson,  P.,  Nov.  22,  i792-'99 

Ambrose  Porter,  Nov.  18,  1806- 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  1809 

Abel  Jackson,  P.,  Nov.  22,  i792-'99 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  1797 

1797 


New  Paltz,  Ulster  Co.,  N.  Y., 

Amenia,  Dutchess  Co.,  N.  Y., 

Bedford,  Westchester  Co.,  N.  Y., 

Ridgebury,  Orange  Co.,  N.  Y., 

Salem,  Ct.,                                       Stephen  Dodd,  P.,  Oct.,  1810-1817 

Somers,  Westchester  Co.,  N.  Y.,  Silas  Constant,  S.  S.,  i8io 

Sylvanus  Haight,  S.  S.,  June  iS,  1806- 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  1812-1815 

(  Supplied  by  Presbytery  1S16-1817 

(      of  Hudson,*  ' 

Ezra  H.  Day,  S.  S.,  1818-1822  (.?) 

Abraham  Purdy,  S.  S.,  1824-1825 

Griffith  H.  Griffith,  S.  S.,  1825-182S 

Henry  Benedict,  1833-1836 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  1800 

Abraham  Purdy,  S.  S.,  1810- 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  1S12-1814 

Abner  Brundage,  S.  S.,  May,  1815-1819 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  1819  and  1826 


Peekskill,  West.  Co.,  N.  Y., 
Independent  Presb.  Church, 


Walkill,  Orange  Co.,  N.  Y., 

Caldwell,  N.  J., 

Pound  Ridge,  West.  Co.,  N.  Y.,  Abner  Benedict,  S.  S., 

Richard  Andrus,  S.  S., 
Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 
Asahel  Bronson, 
John  G.  Lowe,  S.  S., 
,  Charles  Seely,  S.  S., 
Zenas  Smith,  S.  S., 
William  Bull,  S.  S., 
Allan  Blair,  S.  S., 
Abel  Jackson,  P., 
Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 
William  Blain,  S.  S., 
I~)aniel  Young,  S.  S., 


24.  Middletown,  Orange  Co.,  N.  Y. 


25.  Deer  Park,  Orange  Co.,  N.  Y. 

26.  Monroe,  "  "         " 


Hosea  Ball,  S.  S., 
John  White,  P., 
John  Boyd,  S.  S., 


1796 
1802-18 1 8 
1818-1S19 

1818 
Nov.  II,  i8i9-'2i 

1796 

1798- 

180 5- I 807 

1808-181 2 

i8i2-June  2,  '19 

1819 
1820-1823 
1823-1824 

1821-1823 
(  June,  1823- 
J         Sept.,  1824 

1825-1834 


*  Supplies  appointed. 


ROLL    OF    CHURCHES.  69 

Name.  Pastors  and  Staled  Supplies.  Term  of  Service. 

27.  Brookfield,  Ct.,  Abner  Brundage,  1821- 

28.  Pittsburgh,  Dutchess  Co.,  N.  Y. 

29.  Pleasant  Vallev,  Dutchess  Co.,  f 

N.  Y.,  '  i 

30.  Sharon  Mountain,  Ct.,  Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  1796-1797 

31.  Pittstown,  N.  Y. 

32.  New  Hempstead,  N.  Y.,  .\llan  Blair,  P.,  June  27,  1797- 
^;^.  Litchfield,  Ct., 

34.  Goshen,  Ct. 

35.  Franklin,  Del.  Co.,  N.  Y. 

36.  Carlisle,  Schoharie  Co.,  N.  Y. 

37.  Esperance,       "  «         n  • 

38.  Franklin,  Dutchess  (now  Put-  )  ^        i-    1  1     n      1    ^  1      ^ 

nam  Co.),  N.  Y.,  f  Supplied  by  Presbytery,         1795  and  1799 

The  above  list  cannot  properly  be  termed  a  roll.  To 
construct  one  according  to  the  views  of  the  Associated 
Presbyteries  would  be  impossible,  because  the  connection 
of  the  churches  with  the  Presbytery  is  not  given.  Some 
were  under  what  they  called  their  "watch  and  care,"  but 
how  many  it  is  impossible  to  determine.  Others  seem  to 
have  owed  their  connection  to  their  pastor  or  stated  supply, 
who  was  a  member.  A  change  in  the  pulpit  severed  the  tie. 
The  incumbent,  too,  from  motives  of  convenience  or  prefer- 
ence, often  united  with  a  different  ecclesiastical  body,  and 
the  church  would  go  with  him.  Still  others  only  applied 
for  supplies,  as  Franklin  and  Bedford.  The  roll  is  really  a 
list  of  churches,  the  names  of  which  appear  in  the  minutes. 

Of  the  thirty-nine  churches  during  the  thirty-eight  years 
of  the  Presbytery's  existence,  only  twenty  were  represented 
at  its  meetings  by  delegates.  North  Salem,  Mt,  Pleasant, 
Yorktown,  Red  Mills,  Poughkcepsie,  Cornwall,  Stamford, 
New  York,  Gilead,  North  Stamford,  Salem,  Somers,  Amenia, 
Ridgebury,  Peekskill,  Pound  Ridge,  Middletown,  Monroe, 
l^rookfield,  and  Greenburgh.  The  churches  most  frequently 
represented  were  Yorktown,  Red  Mills,  Gilead,  and  North 
Stamford.  North  Salem  and  Mt.  Pleasant  were  the  first  to 
connect  themselves  with  the  Presbytery.  Yorktown  and 
Red   Mills   cast   in  their  lot  a  few   months  later.       Pound 


*  Supplies  appointed. 


JO  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

Ridge,  which  was  represented  in  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson, 
April  20,  1796,  may  have  followed  their  example  through 
the  influence  of  Abner  Benedict,  who  became  stated  supply 
in  1796. 

The  West  Church  of  Phillips  Precinct,  formerly  known 
as  Gregory's  Parish,  worshiped  in  a  log  structure,  located 
in  what  is  now  the  town  of  South  East,  not  far  from  the 
Carmel  line.  It  had  practically  become  extinct.  August  9, 
1792,  it  was  reorganized  by  "members  of  different  churches 
and  of  the  former  church  in  this  place,  now  dissolved  "  by 
the  adoption  of  nine  articles  of  faith  and  a  covenant.  By 
request  Rev.  Messrs.  Ichabod  Lewis,  Jehu  Minor,  Amzi 
Lewis,  and  Silas  Constant  were  present.  A  new  house  of 
worship  was  erected  one  mile  south  of  the  village  of  Car- 
mel at  what  is  now  known  as  the  Gilead  Burying  Ground. 
The  polity  of  the  church  was  that  of  its  predecessor.  Con- 
gregational. Dec.  9,  1792,  the  name  was  changed  to 
Gilead.  It  is  impossible  to  determine  when  this  congrega- 
tion became  connected  with  the  Associated  Westchester 
Presbytery ;  probably,  not  long  after  its  reorganization.  A 
second  reorganization  took  place  June  i,  1803,  when  the 
Second  Presbyterian  Congregational  Church  of  Carmel  was 
constituted,  which  adopted  the  articles  and  covenant  framed 
in  1792. 


CHAPTER    VI  11. 


The  Associated   Westchester  Presbytery   Continued. 

THE  Yorktowii  Church*  engaged  Silas  Constant  as 
stated  supply  for  one  year,  November,  1785.  Objec- 
tion was  publicly  made  at  the  meeting  of  the  congregation 
that  he  was  not  a  member  of  an  ecclesiastical  body  in  con- 
nection with  the  Presbyterian  Church.  He  expressed  a 
willingness  to  unite  with  the  Dutchess  County  Presbytery, 
and  did  so  at  the  next  meeting  held  at  Bedford,  May  18, 
1786,  but  only  as  "an  advisory  member."  November,  1786, 
he  was  called  as  pastor,  and  at  his  own  request  installed  by 
a  council  composed  of  members  of  the  Dutchess  County 
and  Morris  County  Presbyteries.  As  we  have  already  shown, 
shortly  after  his  ministry  began  he  taught  the  peculiar  views 
of  the  body  from  which  he  came  on  ecclesiastical  polity. 
At  this  time  there  were  four  elders.  The  first  entry  in  the 
record  kept  by  himself  states  that  "  the  church  and  elders 
met."  From  that  date  (January  5,  1786)  to  May  2,  1806, 
there  is  no  mention  made  of  the  eldership.  The  church, 
according  to  the  record  —  not  the  session  —  met  for  the  ex- 
amination of  applicants  for  membership  and  for  the  disci- 
pline of  delinquent  members. f     Within  twenty  years  three 


*  This  account  of  the  division  at  Vorktown  during  Mr.  Constant's  pastorate 
was  prepared  after  a  very  careful  study  of  the  records  of  the  church,  the 
Dutchess  County  Presbytery,  Associated  Westchester  Presbytery,  and  Pres- 
bytery of  Hudson,  the  evidence  in  the  trial  of  Rev.  Griffith  H.  Griffith  before 
the  I'resbytery  of  Dedford  (Rccnrds,  vol.  i,  \>\>.  142-279),  and  three  pamphlets 
published  in  1807. 

t  That  a  change  had  taken  place  in  the  government  of  the  church  is  con- 
ceded by  all.  A  Viein  of  tlu-  late  Difficulties  in  the  Presbyterian  Congregation 
in  Yorktown  for  the  Inforination  of  the  Friends  of  Zioti.  By  the  Presbyterian 
Church  in  said  place  [Records  of  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  vol.  i,  pp.  207-241]  — 


72  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

of  the  four  elders  had  passed  away.  The  vacancies  were 
not  filled.  The  election  of  new  elders  was  urged  in  the 
public  meetings  upon  Mr.  Constant.  No  action,  however, 
was  taken. 

There  was  no  pronounced  opposition  to  change  in  the 
government  of  the  church  until  October,  1805,  when  the 
pastor  made  use  of  this  statement  in  receiving  a  person  to 
the  church.  "  Mr.  Porter,  you  must  understand  that  it  is 
not  a  Presbyterian  but  a  Congregational  Church  you  are 
about  to  join."  This  announcement  astonished  many  of  the 
congregation.  Judge  Lee  called  on  Mr.  Constant  the  next 
morning  for  an  explanation.  The  latter  is  said  to  have 
replied,  "  It  is  a  Congregational  Church  and  has  been  so 
near  twenty  years  ;  now  help  yourself,  if  you  can."  The 
people  took  sides  ;  the  majority  sided  with  the  pastor,  while 
the  minority,  under  the  leadership  of  Judge  Lee,  opposed 
him.  Excitement,  no  doubt,  ran  high,  and  probably  both 
sides  used  unchristian  language  towards  each  other.  Judge 
Lee  was  publicly  excommunicated  February  16,  1806,  on  the 
charge  of  slandering  Mr.  Constant.* 


"  There  were  then  three  elders  in  the  church,  who  together  with  the  brethren 
in  general,  adopted  the  method  of  receiving  their  members  by  an  examination 
before  the  elders  and  church  in  a  body,  and  of  judging  concerning  them  in 
cases  of  discipline,  but  did  not  establish  it  by  any  vote  or  act  of  the  church, 
that  it  should  be  the  invariable  method  [210-1]  .  .  .  The  confession  now 
used  by  this  church  is  a  compound  of  the  doctrines  of  the  church  of  Scotland 
.  .  .  brought  forward  by  the  elders  or  deacons  at  or  before  the  settlement  of 
the  present  pastor  "  [p.  21 1].  An  account  of  the  Dissensions,  etc.,  by  an  Impar- 
tial Spectator  —  "The  only  matters  in  which  any  change  has  taken  place  are 
in  church  discipline  [9]  •  ■  •  It  is  a  fact  admitted  that  Mr.  Constant  is  a 
Presbyterian  of  the  Congregational  order"  [p.  13].  Manual  for  the  commu- 
nicafits  of  the  Congres^ational  Church  in  Yorktown,  A'.  Y.,  March,  1833  —  "Dur- 
ing Mr.  Constant's  ministry  the  church,  which  had  before  been  Presbyterian, 
gradually  assumed  the  Cotii^regational  form  of  government,  and  in  1787  Ur.  Elias 
Cornelius  and  Mr.  Benjamin  Haight  were  chosen  Deacons  .  .  .  About  the_ 
year  1806,  a  division  occurred  in  the  church,  when  more  than  two-thirds  of 
the  members  adhered  to  Mr.  Constant,  and  maintained  the  Congi-egational 
form  of  government,  2cnA  the  remainder  resumed  the  Presbyterian  form." 

*Only  at  this  point  is  evidence  really  conflicting.  There  is  another 
version  of  the  origin  of  the  difficulty  by  the  "  Impartial  Spectator."  "  About 
the  year  1805,  he  (Judge  Lee)  formed  a  plan  to  get  into  his  possession  a  house 


DIVISION    AT    YORKTOWN,  73 

The  church  had  been  incorporated  under  the  law  of  the 
State  in  1784.  Through  fai^ire  to  elect  trustees  it  had 
ceased  to  be  a  corporation  ;  the  trouble  called  attention  to 
the  fact.  A  meeting  was  called  for  the  purpose  of  re-incor- 
poration for  March  4,  1806.  Both  parties  were  present,  and 
each,  no  doubt,  desired  to  elect  trustees  favorable  to  their 
interests.  Judge  Lee  and  his  friends  finding  themselves 
in  a  minority,  left  the  church  and  organized  at  a  private 
house  near  by,  electing  trustees  and  adopting  the  name  of 
the  "  First  Presbyterian  Church  settled  upon  the  plan  of  the 
church  of  Scotland  in  Hanover."  The  majority  also  elected 
trustees  and  assumed  the  same  name.  Both  certificates 
were  filed  with  the  county  clerk  for  record. 

The  Presbyterian  element  began  to  realize  the  necessity 
for  the  organization  of  a  Presbyterian  Church.  Accordingly, 
April  16,  1806,  Judge  Lee  and  Daniel  Horton,  Jr.,  appeared 
before  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson,  in  session  at  Franklin, 
with  a  petition  of  thirty-three  persons,  calling  attention  to 
the  disorganized  condition  and  the  danger  of  losing  the 
property,  and  requesting  the  organization  of  a  church.  The 
Presbytery  appointed  a  committee  consisting  of  Rev.  Messrs. 
Andrew  King,  John  Ely,  Methuselah  Baldwin,  Isaac  Lewis, 
Ebenezer  Grant,  and  Eliezer  Burnet,  and  Elders  Reuben 
Hopkins,  John  Hayt,  Moses  St.  John,  and  James  Porter  a 
committee  "to  meet  at  Yorktown  on  Tuesday,  the  loth  day 
of  June  next,  at  1 1  a.  m.,  to  receive  under  the  care  of  the 
Presbytery  said  congregation,  should  it  be  constituted,  to 

which  stands  on  the  ground  belonging  to  the  congregation,  on  certain  terms 
which  he  submitted  to  them.  His  propositions  were  ojiposed  by  Dr.  White 
and  some  others  of  the  leading  members  of  the  society,  and  negatived.  Not 
upon  the  principle  that  Judge  Lee  intended  to  defraud  the  society,  which, 
however,  might  have  been  the  fact,  but  u|)on  the  general  ground  that  it  would 
be  against  their  interest  to  accede  to  it.  The  dispute  ran  high,  and  Judge  Lee 
was  much  irritated  to  tind  he  could  not  bring  a  majority  of  the  congregation 
into  his  views;  and  from  that  time  he  appears  to  have  formed  his  hostile 
plans,  and  to  have  waged  perpetual  warfare  against  the  congregation,  etc., 
etc.,"  pp.  5-7.  [We  have  no  evidence  of  this  beyond  the  bare  statements  in 
the  pamphlets.] 


74  'IHE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

organize  a  church  in  said  congregation,  provided  said  com- 
mittee should  deem  it  expoiiient,  and  to  grant  them  any 
other  assistance  in  the  power  of  the  Presbytery  to  grant 
them." 

The  committee  met  as  directed,  and  in  their  report  pre- 
sented at  Bethlehem  on  September  3  following,  gave  the 
results  of  their  investigations  : 

"The  committee  to  whom  was  referred  the  petition  of  Judge  Lee,  Daniel 
Horton,  Jr.,  and  others  of  Yorktown,  report,  that  in  obedience  to  the  appoint- 
ment and  order  of  Presbytery  your  committee  met  at  Yorktown  in  Westchester 
county,  on  Tuesday  the  loth  day  of  June  last  past,  (except  the  Rev.  Mr.  Eliezer 
Burnet  and  Mr.  John  Hayt)  at  which  time  the  petitioners  came  forward  with  a 
request  that  the  congregation,  of  which  they  were  members,  might  be  taken 
under  the  care  of  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson.  In  proceeding  on  the  business 
the  committee  found  the  inhabitants  of  Yorktown  unhappily  divided.  Th^ 
petitioners  informed  your  committee  that  they  had  agreeably  to  the  recom- 
mendation of  Presbytery,  incorporated  according  to  law,  and  styled  themselves 
Presbyterians,  agreeably  to  the  plan  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  and  declared 
it  to  be  their  desire  and  design,  to  act  in  all  matters  of  discipline  conformably 
to  the  rules  of  the  F'resbyterian  Church  in  the  United  States,  as  has  been  the 
case  in  former  times,  when  Mr.  Sackett  was  their  minister  and  stood  connected 
with  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess.  The  other  partv,  with  Mr.  Silas  Constant, 
their  present  teacher,  said  they  were  also  incorporated  under  the  same  style, 
and  professed  themselves  Presbyterians,  agreeably  to  the  plan  of  the  church 
of  Scotland,  although  they  acknowledged  that  they  had  laid  aside  the  use  of 
ruling  elders,  and  were  in  the  practice  of  receiving  members  into  their  church, 
and  conducting  the  internal  government  thereof,  agreeably  to  the  constitution 
adopted  by  that  body  which  call  themselves  the  Morris  County  Presbytery. 

"  After  hearing  the  parties  at  considerable  length,  until  a  late  hour  in  the 
evening,  your  committee  agreed  to  propose  to  them  the  following  questions  for 
their  consideration,  to  be  answered  the  next  morning  at  the  meeting  of  the 
committee,  and  delivered  them  copies  thereof,  viz. 

"  1st.  Notwithstanding  all  the  animosities  and  difference  of  opinion,  and 
apparent  prevalence  of  party  spirit  which  have  existed  for  some  time  past  in 
the  congregation  —  are  the  members  thereof  willing  to  adhere  to  their  original 
style  of  incorporation,  and  the  style  expressed  in  the  deed  by  which  they  hold 
their  public  property  ? 

"  2d.  Have  the  members  of  this  congregation  heretofore  considered  them- 
selves, and  Mr.  Sackett,  their  former  minister,  as  connected  with  a  body  of 
Christians  styled  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United  States,  and  with  the 
late  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  ? 

"3d.  Do  this  congregation  now  consider  themselves  as  connected  with  any 
order  or  denomination  of  Christians  ?     And  what  is  that  particular  order  ? 

"4th.  Do  they  consider  themselves  as  now  connected  ;  or  do  they,  at  this 
time,  desire  to  connect  themselves  with  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson,  which  now 
embraces  the  late  Presbytery  of  Dutchess .' 


DIVISION    AT    VORKTUWN.  75 

"That  at  the  meeting  of  the  committee  on  Wednesday  morning,  June  nth, 
the  parties  appeared,  and  the  petitioners  gave  the  committee  the  following 
answers  to  the  questions  above  mentioned,  to  wit  —  To  questions  ist,  2d  and 
4th  they  answer  in  the  affirmative  ;  and  to  the  3d  they  do  consider  themselves 
connected  with  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

"That  the  other  party,  by  Mr.  Constant,  gave  the  following  answers  to  the 
questions  above  mentioned,  viz.  —  To  question  ist  in  the  affirmative.  To  2d, 
the  Presbyterian  Church  of  the  United  States  was  not  known  as  such  in  the 
days  of  Mr.  Sackett,  and  we  have  never  learned  any  such  style  from  the  aged 
people,  but  we  think  they  were  in  connection  with  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  so 
long  as  it  e.xisted  as  such.  To  question  3d,  answer  yes,  in  the  more  extensive 
sense  of  the  word ;  we  consider  ourselves  connected  with  every  order  of 
Christians  who  hold  the  faith  of  the  gospel.  But  as  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess, 
as  such,  is  extinct,  and  we  have  never  formally  joined  any  other  body,  we  must 
be  considered  as  connected  with  the  church  of  Scotland,  according  to  our 
former  style.  To  question  4th,  they  have  never  adopted  a  style  that  implies 
that  they  consider  themselves  in  any  other  sense  connected  with  the  Hudson 
Presbytery,  than  with  other  religious  bodies ;  and  whether  the  church  wishes 
to  connect  with  the  Hudson  Presbytery,  we  are  not  prepared  to  answer. 

"  Vour  committee  further  report,  that  having  sought  after  all  possible  infor- 
mation respecting  the  state  of  the  inhabitants  of  Yorktown,  as  to  their  eccle- 
siastical concerns,  are  grieved  that  they  are  obliged  to  consider  that  people  in  a 
very  broken  and  divided  state.  A  considerable  proportion  of  the  inhabitants 
having  forsaken  the  I'resbyterian  Church  and  connection,  your  committee 
therefore  consider  it  their  duty  to  pay  due  attention  to  the  reduced  congrega- 
tion of  Presbyterians  which  they  find  in  that  place ;  and  unanimously  agreed 
to  take  said  congregation  under  the  care  of  the  Hudson  I'resbytery  in  full  con- 
fidence that  the  Presbytery  will  attend  to  the  congregation,  and  from  time  to 
time  afford  them  such  advice  and  assistance  as  may,  under  the  smiles  of 
heaven,  tend  to  restore  them  to  their  former  state  of  prosperity."  [Records  of 
the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  vol.  I,  pp.  159-164.] 

Rev.  Ebenezcr  Grant  was  appointed  to  preach  at  York- 
town  on  the  third  Sabbath  in  October,  to  preside  in  the 
choice  of  elders,  ordain  them,  if  he  think  proper,  and 
administer  the  Lord's  Supper.  These  duties  were  per- 
formed and  the  service  held  in  the  church  apparently  on 
October  6th,  because  we  find  the  following  protest  in  the 
church  record  under  date  of  October  1 1  :  — 

"  Whereas  the  Rev.  Ebenezcr  Grant  of  Bedford  came  into  tiiis  place  on 
the  6th  inst  without  even  notifying  the  church  at  large  or  even  the  pastor,  pro- 
ceeded to  ap|)oint  two  ruling  elders  over  this  church, 

"  Resolved,  i.  That  this  conduct  is  unjustifiable  by  any  known  Gospel  rule 
or  precedent. 

"2.  That  this  church  view  it  as  a  grand  imposition  on  the  church  ani.1 
pastor. 

"3.     That  it  tends  to  schi.-^m  and  disorder."     [Church  Records,  p.  59.] 


"jG  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

Mr.  Constant  and  hi.s  friends  were  not  idle.  April  19, 
1806,  they  considered  the  propriety  "of  appointing  elders 
or  some  persons  to  assist  in  worship  occasionally,  and  in 
matters  of  discipline,  and  visitations  &c.  "  ;  and  May  2,  two 
elders  were  elected.     July  7  it  was 

"Agreed  unanimously  that  this  church  consider  themselves  as  originally 
standing  in  connection  with  the  church  of  Scotland  and  belonging  to  the  late 
Dutchess  Presbytery. 

"  Voted  that  this  church  do  and  will  maintain  the  style  and  continue  in  the 
same  connection  with  the  church  of  Scotland  as  far  as  possible  and  circum- 
stances render  convenient. 

"  Voted  that  this  church  in  style,  doctrine  and  worship  are  essentially  the 
same  they  always  were  from  the  first  establishment  as  a  church."  [Church 
Records,  p.  54.] 

August  17th,  it  was  decided  to  call  an  ecclesiastical 
council  composed  of  Rev.  Messrs.  Amzi  Lewis,  Richard 
Andrus,  Stephen  Dodd,  Jehu  Minor, Grant,  Bar- 
net,  John  Corn  well,  and  Sylvan  us  Haight,  and  delegates 
from  the  churches  to  which  they  ministered.  The  Council 
met  at  Yorktown  in  September.  How  many  of  the  per- 
sons invited  were  present  we  do  not  know.  The  following 
questions  were  presented  for  their  consideration :  — 

"  I.  The  council  are  requested  to  examine  into  the  origin  and  present  con- 
stitution and  standing  of  this  church,  their  covenant,  confession  of  faith,  and 
connections,  and  give  us  their  opinion,  whether  we  have  so  altered  in  either 
or  each  of  these  particulars,  as  to  destroy  our  original  constitution,  and  given 
grounds  for  their  objections  (that  is,  the  objections  of  those  that  have  absented 
themselves  from  the  Church) .'' 

"  2.  Whether  there  are  any  grounds  on  which  those  members  can  be  justi- 
fied for  their  withdrawing  from  this  church  in  the  manner  they  do  ? 

"3.  What  is  expedient,  and  duty  for  this  church  to  do  further,  towards 
those  members  who  have  withdrawn  from  us  ? 

"  4.  Can  a  minor  part  of  a  church  and  congregation,  withdrawing  them- 
selves from  the  main  body  to  which  they  belong,  be  justly  stiled  tiie  body  or 
church  and  society,  from  which  they  withdrew  .'"'* 

The  council  returned  the  following  answers  :  — 

"  The  council  have  no  evidence  that  the  church  have  so  altered  in  any- 
thing as  to  destroy  their  original  constitution,  or  afford  grounds  for  the  absen- 
sions  of  the  disaffected  members. 


*  A  View  of  the  Difficulties,  etc.    (Records  of  Pres.  of  Bedford,  vol.  I,  pp. 
226-7). 


DIVISION    AT    YORKTOWN.  J"] 

"  And  therefore,  in  respect  to  the  second  question,  we  discover  no  justifia- 
ble grounds  for  those  members  to  withdraw  themselves  from  the  church  in  the 
manner  they  have  done. 

"And  in  answer  to  the  third  question,  we  reply,  that  according  to  the 
representation  made  to  us,  those  members  must  be  considered  as  offenders  and 
treated  agreeable  to  the  laws  of  the  Gospel. 

"In  respect  to  the  fourth  question,  we  observe,  that  a  minor  part  of  a 
church  and  congregation,  withdrawing  from  the  majority,  and  holding  the  same 
doctrines,  cannot  be,  with  propriety,  called  the  same  church  and  congregation 
from  which  they  withdrew. 

"The  council  earnestly  exhort  the  church  to  act  with  caution  and  the 
meekness  of  wisdom  in  all  their  proceedings,  and  endeavor  to  keep  the  unity 
of  the  spirit  in  the  bond  of  peace,  and  commend  them  to  the  grace  of  God, 
which  is  able  to  build  them  up  and  establish  them  in  the  order  of  the  Gospel."* 

The  advice  given  was  accepted,  and  within  the  next  few 
months  a  number  of  those  who  had  withdrawn  were  excom- 
municated. 

Shortly  after  Rev.  Mr.  Grant  ordained  elders,  the  major- 
ity secured  exclusive  possession  of  the  church.  An  eject- 
ment suit  was  begun  by  the  Presbyterian  portion  of  the 
congregation.  The  action  was  tried  before  the  Circuit 
Court,  Chief  Justice  (afterwards  Chancellor)  Kent  presiding. 
May  1 8,  1807.  The  case  turned  upon  the  stipulation  in  the 
deed  of  the  property  that  it  was  "  for  the  use  of  a  Presby- 
terian congregation  and  to  be  used  as  a  public  place  of  divine 
worshi])  by  the  neighbors  and  inhabitants  thereabouts  exer- 
cising their  religion  and  public  worship  of  God  Almighty 
after  and  according  to  the  form  of  worship  used  and  exer- 
cised by  the  now  established  Presbyterian  Church  govern- 
ment in  that  part  of  Great  Britain,  called  Scotland,  and  for 
no  other  purpose  or  intent  whatsoever."  Which  of  the  two 
parties  to  the  suit  complied  with  the  stipulation  .''  Among 
the  witnesses  for  the  plaintiffs  were  Rev.  Messrs.  John  Mc- 
Knight  (D.D),  John  Rogers  (D.D.),  John  Ely,  Ebenezer 
Grant,  and  Methuselah  Baldwin.  The  only  witness  for  the 
defendant  was  Rev.  Silas  Constant.  The  Chief  Justice  in 
his  charge  is  reported  to  have  said  —  "The  testimony  on 
part  of  Mr.  Constant  is  very  respectable,  but  the  testimony 


*A  View  of  the  Difficulties,  etc.    (Records  of  Pres.  of  Bedford,  vol.   I., 
pp.  22S-9). 


yS  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

on  the  other  side  is  equally  respectable,  and  eight  times  as 
strong."  The  judgment  rendered  was  in  favor  of  the  plain- 
tiffs. No  appeal  was  taken,  and  the  building  was  restored 
to  the  Presbyterian  church. 

The  ejected  party  built  a  new  house  of  worship  about 
three-fourths  of  a  mile  east  of  the  old  one.  It  became 
known  as  the  Independent  Presbyterian  and  later  as  the 
Congregational  Church.  The  division  was  attended  by 
great  excitement  and  engendered  much  bitterness.  Three 
pamphlets  were  published,  one  by  the  majority  entitled  "  A 
View  of  the  Late  Difficulties"  etc.,  a  second,  which  bears  the 
title  of  "Strictures"  etc.,  prepared  it  is  said  by  a  member  of 
the  Presbytery  of  Hudson  in  reply  to  the  first,  and  a  third 
styled  "  An  Account  of  the  Disscensions  "  etc.,  which  tradi- 
tion attributes  to  Dr.  Henry  White,  a  son-in-law  of  Mr.  Con- 
stant. A  half  century  was  required  to  heal  the  breach.  Both 
churches  were  weak  and  afforded  very  inadequate  support  to 
their  pastors.  After  i860  the  Congregational  Church  be- 
came unable  to  support  a  minister.  August  5,  1865,  most  of 
its  members  united  on  certificate  with  the  Presbyterian 
Congregation. 

The  first  house  of  worship  in  the  present  village  of 
Peekskill  must  have  been  erected  prior  to  July  16,  1797,  be- 
cause at  that  date  Silas  Constant  preached,  according  to  his 
diary,  in  the  "new  meeting-house."  Its  site  was  that  of  the 
First  Church  on  South  Street.  The  Presbyterians  of  this 
place  were  then  connected  with  the  Yorktown  Church,  to 
the  support  of  which  they  contributed  from  1787  to  18 13. 
The  records  show  that  "  the  church  met  in  Peekskill "  occa- 
sionally for  the  recei^tion  or  discipline  of  communicants  and 
the  administration  of  the  Lord's  Supper.  The  last  entry  to 
that  effect  bearing  the  date  of  Junfe  4,  18 14.  The  church 
in  this  instance  was  the  Congregational  Church.  When  the 
Yorktown  Church  ceased  to  be  connected  with  the  Dutchess 
County  Presbytery,  both  it  and  the  out  station  at  Peekskill 
came  under  the  influence  of  the  Associated  Westchester 
Presbytery.  Supplies  were  appointed  l)y  that  body  as  early 
as  1800. 


DIVISION   AT    PEEKSKILL.  79 

The  division  of  1806  was  felt  in  both  i:)ortions  of  the 
parish.  The  land  upon  which  the  church  stood  had  been 
donated  by  Nathaniel  Brown,  a  Friend,  "  to  the  Presbyterians 
of  the  belief  of  Dr.  Rodgers  of  New  York."  The  decision 
of  the  civil  court  with  respect  to  the  Yorktown  Church 
property  virtually  settled  to  whom  that  at  Peekskill  belonged 
—  the  Presbyterians,  who  undoubtedly  were  in  the  minority. 
The  friends  of  Mr.  Constant,  as  at  Yorktown,  were  obliged 
to  find  new  quarters.  What  was  familiarly  known  as  the 
"church  on  the  hill  "  was  erected.  September  29,  1813,  in 
order  to  take  title  to  this  projierty,  or  as  a  preliminary  step  to 
the  purchase  of  the  land  and  erection  of  the  house  of  worship, 
the  Independent  Presbyterian  Congregation  of  Peekskill 
was  incorporated.  May,  18 16,  a  church  of  seventy-five 
members  was  organized,  which  by  18 19  had  become  one 
hundred. 

In  the  meantime,  April,  1815,  the  Presbyterian  Congre- 
gation on  South  Street  was  received  under  the  care  of  the 
Presbytery  of  Hudson,  and  supplies  were  appointed  at  three 
succeeding  meetings.  Soon  after  it  must  have  become  ex- 
tinct. After  the  death  of  Mr.  Constant  in  1825,  the  influ- 
ence of  the  Associated  Westchester  Presbytery  began  to 
wane.  January  24,  1826,  the  Independent  Presbyterian 
Congregation  was  received  under  the  care  of  the  Presbytery 
of  New  York.  This  action  was  rescinded  at  the  next  meet- 
ing, because  of.  great  opposition  in  the  congregation.  Those 
who  favored  a  Presbvterian  Church  in  the  "church  on  the 
hill  "  with  a  few  from  the  Yorktown  Church,  were  organized 
into  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Peekskill  on  June  25,  1826, 
by  Rev.  Elihu  Baldwin.  June  28,  it  was  received  under  the 
care  of  the  Presbytery  of  New  York.  The  South  .Street 
Church  became  their  place  of  worship. 

At  no  time  during  its  existence  was  the  Associated 
Westchester  Presbytery  a  large  body.  At  its  organization 
in  1792,  there  were  only  six  members  on  its  roll,  all  of  whom, 
with  delegates  from  two  churches,  North  Salem  and  Alt. 
Pleasant,  were  present.     Seven  years  later,  September  25, 


8o  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBVTERV. 

1798,  we  find  eleven  on  the  roll.  April  10,  1821,  there  were 
thirteen  —  six  present  with  delegates  from  five  churches. 
The  largest  attendance  was  in  October  of  that  year,  when 
eight  ministers  and  nine  delegates  were  enrolled.  The  pre- 
fix deacon  often  appears  before  the  names  of  the  delegates, 
never  that  of  elder. 

In  theology  the  Presbytery  claimed  to  be  "  Edwardian." 
Of  its  ecclesiastical  peculiarities  we  gain  some  idea  from  the 
Constitution  and  minutes.  Ministers  were  to  be  admitted 
by  a  majority  of  two-thirds  of  those  present,  and  might  be 
excluded  by  a  bare  majority.  The  right  to  examine  all  appli- 
cants for  membership  was  asserted.  Ministers  presented 
excuses  for  non-attendance  and  asked  leave  of  absence 
when  obliged  to  retire  before  adjournment.  They  were 
admonished  for  failure  to  present  papers  on  assigned  topics. 
One  was  called  to  account  for  assisting  at  an  ordination  "  in 
a  very  disorderly  manner."  The  word  appointed,  so  dis- 
tasteful to  Jacob  Green,  was  employed  with  respect  to  sup- 
plies. The  conduct  of  members  was  a  proper  subject  of 
investigation  ;  and  they,  if  occasion  required,  might  be  dis- 
ciplined. Rev.  Mr.  Frey  was  censured  for  slandering  a  fel- 
low minister.  Later  his  name  was  stricken  from  the  roll 
and  fellowship  withdrawn.  We  shall  have  occasion  again  to 
allude  to  this  case  in  another  connection. 

The  churches  were  regarded  to  be  in  some  sense  under 
the  "watch  and  care"  of  the  Presbytery.  There  is  one  in- 
stance of  regular  dismission.  It  was  regarded  as  disorderly 
for  any  church  to  join  another  ecclesiastical  body  without 
such  dismission.  All  jurisdiction  over  them  was  disclaimed. 
Advice  and  assistance  were  offered  to  all  that  might  seek  it. 
The  minutes  contain  the  word  "  enjoin,"  so  abhorrent  to  the 
authors  of  the  movement,  but  once.  The  Presbytery,  after 
investigation  into  troubles  existing  in  the  Sing  Sing  church 
during  Rev.  Geo.  Bourne's  ministry,  concludes  its  advice 
with  these  words  —  "we  do  enjoin  it  as  a  solemn  duty  .  .  . 
that  you  now  cease  to  converse  about  these  difficulties  in 
private  or  to  say  anything  about  the  investigation,  only  that 
it  has  terminated  in  an  entire  settlement  of  the  difficulties." 


THE    WORK    OF    THE    PKESRYTERY.  8 1 

It  is  evident  that  the  Associated  Westchester  Presbytery 
was  not  a  Presbytery  according  to  our  Form  of  Govern- 
ment. It  possessed  less  authority  over  its  members  and 
none  whatever  over  its  churches.  It  differed  from  an  Asso- 
ciation, in  that  churches  were  represented  by  delegates. 
To  the  ministry  it  was  a  Connecticut  Association,  while  to 
the  churches  it  was  a  Connecticut  Consociation,  shorn  of 
judicial  authority. 

The  business  usually  transacted  at  its  meetings,  of  which 
there  were  two  stated  each  year,  was  the  presentation  by 
the  ministers  of  a  narrative  of  their  labors  with  a  report  of 
the  spiritual  condition  of  the  churches,  to  which  they  min- 
stered,  the  examination  of  candidates,  the  appointment  of 
supplies  for  vacant  churches,  and  of  some  of  their  own 
number  to  itinerate  from  three  to  six  weeks  at  a  time  in  the 
newly  settled  counties  west  of  the  Hudson.  Sermons  and 
papers  on  theological  topics  were  presented  by  members. 
For  a  time  beginning  with  September,  1819,  the  churches 
presented  their  records  for  examination. 

When  a  person  "asked  for  advice  "  with  view  to  enter- 
ing the  ministry,  a  committee  was  appointed  to  superin- 
tend his  studies.  The  branches  ]:)rescribed  were  English 
grammar,  Latin,  Greek,  logic,  mathematics,  natural  philoso- 
phy, astronomy,  systematic  theology,  and  ecclesiastical  his- 
tory. Texts  and  subjects  were  assigned  for  sermons  and 
papers.  This  course  of  study  required  several  years,  dur- 
ing which  the  candidate  was  expected  to  be  present  at  all 
the  stated  meetings  for  advice  and  examination.  For  non- 
attendance  he  was  called  to  account.  To  some  of  the  stu- 
dents aid  was  granted  from  funds  of  the  society  for  the  pro- 
motion of  learning  and  religion  in  Morris  County.  When 
sufficient  progress  had  been  made,  the  candidate  received 
permission  to  teach  and  exhort.  He  was  ordained  after  the 
prescribed  course  had  been  comj^leted.  The  supervision 
seems  to  have  been  careful.  The  names  of  twenty-seven 
candidates  are  found  in  the  minutes.     Of   these    nineteen 


82  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBVTERV. 

were  in  due  time  ordained — Jonas  Hickok  (Feb.  23,  1796), 
David  narrower  (Sept.  29,  1796),  Allan  Blair  (June  28,  1797), 
Ja.son  Perkins  (Oct.  2,  1800),  James  Barr  (Oct.  2,  1800), 
Stephen  Dodd  (Sept.  28,  1803),  Sylvanus  Haight  (June  18, 
1806),  Abraham  Purdy  (Oct.  17,  18 10),  Joel  Osborn  (Sept. 
26,  181 1),  Abner  Brundage  (May  16,  1816),  John  R.  St. 
John  (May  16,  1816),  James  N.  Austin  (May  16,  1816),  Ezra 
H.  Day  (June  3,  1818),  John  G.  Lowe  (Nov.  11,  1819), 
Enoch  Bouton  (Oct.  5,  1820),  Hosea  Ball  (Oct.  18,  1821), 
Edward  McLaughlin  (Oct.  18,  1821),  Richard  Waller  Knight 
(June  29,  1825),  and  Daniel  Jones  (June  29,  1825). 

The  benevolent  work  of  the  Presbytery  was  confined  to 
home  missions.  The  far  west  to  them  was  the  central  and 
western  portions  of  New  York.  Members  of  the  Presbytery 
or  candidates  under  its  care  were  appointed  at  each  stated 
meeting"  during  the  early  part  of  its  history  to  itinerate  west 
of  the  Hudson,  in  the  valleys  of  the  Delaware  and  Susque- 
hanna. Churches  were  organized.  The  expenses  of  this 
work  were  defrayed  from  collections  taken  up  on  these  tours 
and  from  the  funds  of  the  society  for  the  promotion  of  learn- 
ing and  religion,  organized  by  the  Morris  County  Presbytery. 
In  1804  initiatory  steps  were  taken  towards  missionary  work 
in  Georgia.  No  missionary  seems  to  have  been  sent  out. 
In  18 17  a  plan  was  devised  for  the  support  of  two  mission- 
aries "  in  the  destitute  regions  of  our  country,"  and  appeal 
was  made  to  the  churches  for  money.  A  small  amount  was 
collected  and  a  committee  was  appointed  to  carry  on  mis- 
sionary operations  between  Fishkill  and  New  York.  The 
record  shows  that  this  work  was  confined  to  the  immediate 
field  of  the  Presbytery. 

The  narratives  of  the  state  of  religion  for  the  most  part 
complain  of  indifference  to  the  claims  of  religion.  Some- 
times they  speak  of  the  existence  of  infidelity.  Occasion- 
ally they  mention  revivals  in  particular  churches  or  com- 
munities. 

May  II,  1803,  Messrs.  Amzi  Lewis,  Silas  Constant,  and 


CATECHISMS.  83 

Medad  Rogers  were  appointed  a  committee  to  draft  "  a 
formula  of  catechism  adapted  for  the  instruction  of  young 
children  in  the  doctrines  of  religion."  It  was  published 
with  the  concurrence  of  the  Morris  County  Presbytery  in 
1805  ;  also  a  shorter  one  for  beginners.  The  catechisms 
were  distributed  among  the  churches.  No  copy  is  now  to 
be  found. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


The  Associated    WestcJiestcr  Presbytery   Continued. 

AT  a  stated  meeting  held  in  April,  1821,  it  was  reported 
that  one  of  their  own  number,  Mr.  Frey,  pastor  of  the 
First  Independent  Church  of  New  York,  had  stated  that  a 
majority  of  the  members  of  the  Presbytery  were  Sabellians. 
The  matter  was  referred  to  a  committee  consisting  of  Messrs. 
Constant,  Day,  and  Phelps,  who  were  to  report  at  a  meeting 
to  be  held  at  Somers  on  the  fourth  Tuesday  of  May  next. 
The  committee  reported  that  they  had  ascertained  that  Mr. 
Frey  had  slandered  a  brother  by  charging  him  with  Sabell- 
ianism,  and  that  he  had  stated  that  his  reasons  for  not  bring- 
ing charges  against  him  before  the  Presbytery  was  that  the 
majority  were  of  the  same  sentiments.  Mr.  Frey  was  pres- 
ent, but  left  during  the  discussion.  He  was  censured  "  ist 
For  slandering  this  body. — 2nd,  Defamation  of  an  indi- 
vidual.—  3rd,  Neglect  of  Gospel  discipline.  —  4th,  Criminal 
and  repeated  equivocation."  He  was  also  censured  for  the 
"  highly  intemperate  and  disorderly  manner "  in  which  he 
left  the  Presbytery  and  refused  submission  to  its  discipline. 
At  a  subsequent  meeting  held  at  Yorktown,  June  6, 
1 82 1,  on  the  recommendation  of  a  committee,  it  was  decided 
to  issue  a  circular  letter,  to  be  published  under  the  supervi- 
sion of  Mr.  Constant,  "  by  which  the  public  mind  may  be 
relieved  as  to  the  Presbytery's  soundness  in  the  faith,  i)ar- 
ticularly  in  relation  to  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity."  At  the 
next  meeting,  Oct.  i6-i(S,  1821,  two  additional  charges  were 
made  against  Mr.  Frey.     The  following  minute  was  adopted  : 

"Having  fully  investigated  the  .subject  in  leffeiancc  botli  t(i  the  charges 
of  May,  1821,  and  those  now  preferred ;  and  having  satisfieil  themselves  that 
all  regular  and  proper  steps  of  Gospel  discipline  have  been  taken  with  him, 


NEW    PRESBYTERIES.  85 

without  the  desired  effect;  Presbytery  consider  him  as  an  impenitent  offender 
and  unwortliy  of  the  Gospel  ministry  and  their  fellowship :  Therefore,  agreed 
unanimously  that  duty  to  the  Great  Head  of  the  church  and  the  interests  of 
religion  require  them  to  withdraw  from  him,  and  they  do  hereby  exclude  him 
from  this  body  and  order  his  name  to  be  discontinued."  [Constitution  and 
Records,  p.  236.  J 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  there  is  on  record  no  evidence, 
except  the  report  of  the  committee,  and  none  seems  to  have 
been  taken,  and  the  judgment  was  reached  without  even 
the  form  of  a  trial.  October  loth,  preceding,  Mr.  Frey 
and  the  First  Independent  Church  were  received  into  the 
Presbytery  of  New  York.  The  Rose  Street  Church  was 
received  by  the  same  Presbytery  April  i6th,  following. 

The  Presbytery  had  no  organic  connection  with  any 
other  body.  Its  relation  to  the  Morris  County  Presbytery 
was  simply  that  of  one  holding  similar  doctrinal  and  eccle- 
siastical views.  The  original  members  of  each  were  full 
members  of  the  other,  with  the  pri\  ilege  of  meeting  with 
and  taking  part  in  the  proceedings.  The  members  of  the 
Westchester  Presbytery,  who  had  been  connected  with  the 
parent  organization,  were  to  remain  members  of  the  Society 
for  the  promotion  of  learning  and  religion.  The  records 
show  that  this  arrangement  was  carried  into  effect. 

At  a  meeting  held  at  Poughkeepsie,  September  24,  1793, 
the  initiative  was  taken  towards  the  organization  of  new 
Presbyteries  north  and  west  of  Albany.  A  committee  con- 
sisting of  Rev.  Messrs.  Robert  Campbell  and  Daniel  Marsh 
was  appointed  to  attend  the  next  meeting  of  the  Associa- 
tion of  Berkshire  for  consultation.  At  a  special  meeting, 
January  14,  1794,  the  committee  reported  that  the  Associa- 
tion of  Berkshire  recommended  the  organization  oi  two 
Associations  of  Ministers  holding  "  Edwardian  principles 
respecting  doctrine  and  discipline,"  one  of  those  residing  in 
the  vicinity  of  Albany  and  the  other  of  those  in  the  vicinity 
of  Whitestown,  and  "  that  the  Berkshire  Association  be  in 
connection  with  the  two  proposed  Associations,  and  also 
with  the  Morris  County  and  Westchester  Presbyteries."  It 
was  also  reported  that  a  Presbytery  had  been  formed  in  the 


86  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

vicinity  of  Albany  called  the  "Northern  Associated  Pres- 
bytery of  the  State  .of  New  York."  This  had  been  effected 
by  John  Camp,  John  Stevens,  Beriah  Hotchkin,  Robert 
Campbell,  David  Porter,  and  Luther  Gleson,  ministers  in  the 
State  of  New  York,  at  New  Canaan,  November  12,  1793. 
February  3,  1807,  at  Milton,  there  was  organized  the  Saratoga 
Associated  Presbytery. 

Between  these  affiliated  bodies  some  sort  of  connection 
for  the  advancement  of  their  common  interests  and  work 
was  felt  to  be  a  necessity.  The  Northern  Associated  Pres- 
bytery appointed  a  committee  to  meet  similar  committees 
from  Morris  County  and  Westchester  Presbyteries  in  con- 
vention to  be  held  at  Poughkeepsie  April  8,  1794,  to  devise 
some  mode  of  correspondence.  The  convention  met  at  the 
time  and  place  appointed.  John  Stevens  represented  the 
Northern  Presbytery,  Amzi  Lewis  and  Daniel  Marsh  the 
Westchester,  and  Benoni  Bradner  and  Abel  Jackson  the 
Morris  County.  It  was  agreed  to  recommend  to  the  bodies 
which  they  represented  the  appointment  of  two  or  more  of 
their  members  as  correspondents.  They  were  to  meet  as  a 
"Convention  of  Correspondence"  once  each  year  "to  ob- 
tain a  general  and  extensive  view  of  the  state  of  religion, 
and  the  calls  for  ministerial  labor  within  the  circle  of  their 
acquaintance,  and  propose  or  recommend  to  the  several 
Presbyteries  such  measures  as  from  a  general  view  of  the 
state  of  things  may  appear  to  them  adapted  as  proper  means 
to  promote  the  cause  of  the  Redeemer."  The  following  ac- 
tion was  taken  : 

"  As  the  Presbyteries  of  Morris  County  and  Westcliester  have  proposed 
to  publish  some  account  of  their  sentiments  and  practice,  agreed  to  report  to 
the  I'resbyteries  to  which  we  respectively  belong,  as  our  opinion,  that  it  is 
desirable  that  all  those  I'resbyteries  should  write  the  said  publication,  and  that 
the  said  Presbyteries  meet  together  in  a  convention  in  this  place  on  the  first 
Tuesday  of  September  next,  in  order  to  promote  union  and  brotherly  love,  and 
deliberate  and  agree  concerning  the  jiremises."  [Constitution  and  Records, 
P-  23-1 

The  recommendations  were  agreed  to  by  the  Presbyteries, 
and  Messrs.  Amzi  Lewis  and  Daniel  Marsh  were  chosen 
"  correspondents." 


THE    "CONVKNTION    OF    CORRESPONDENCE."  8/ 

This  method  of  correspondence  does  not  seem  to  ha\e 
proved  a  success.  Apparently  but  few  meetings  were  held. 
The  proceedinos  and  recommendations  of  only  two  were  re- 
ported to  the  Westchester  Presbytery.  Mention  is  often 
made  of  the  appointment  of  correspontlents.  In  1802  the 
Northern  Presbytery  proposed  the  revival  of  the  conven- 
tion. This  was  agreed  to  by  the  Westchester  Presb)tery, 
and  correspondents  were  appointed.  Apparently  nothing 
came  from  this  attempt.  September,  1804,  we  have  a  re- 
newal of  the  same  proposal.  A  convention  was  appointed 
for  the  following  August  at  Poughkeepsie.  After  1806,  the 
records  are  ominously  silent  in  regard  to  it,  indicating  that 
the  plan  had  failed. 

The  book,  of  which  mention  is  made  in  the  recommenda- 
tions for  correspondence,  was  published.  On  account  of 
the  failure  of  the  first  convention  to  meet,  its  preparation 
and  publication  fell  to  the  care  of  the  Westchester  Pres- 
bytery. May  12,  1795,  this  Presbytery  agreed  to  take  four 
hundred  copies,  provided  the  Morris  County  and  Northern 
would  take  eight  hundred  copies.  Messrs.  Abner  Benedict, 
Amzi  Lewis,  and  Silas  Constant  were  appointed  a  committee 
to  superintend  the  printing.  It  was  announced  at  a  meet- 
ing held  September  of  the  same  year  that  the  other  asso- 
ciated bodies  declined  the  proposal.  It  was  voted  to  print 
six  hundred  copies  under  Mr.  Marsh's  care.  The  book  was 
issued  near  the  end  of  1796.  It  was  a  bound  volume  of  one 
hundred  and  two  pages,  entitled  "  A  brief  account  of  the 
Associated  Presbyteries,  and  a  general  view  of  their  senti- 
ments concerning  religion  and  ecclesiastical  order."  They 
claimed  tt)  hold  the  general  system  of  doctrine,  "which  may 
be  denominated  Calvinistic,  Edwardian,  or  Hopkinsian." 
They  declined  to  call  any  man  F'ather,  or  to  adopt  any  of 
the  existing  confessions.  Their  own  consisted  of  eighteen 
articles,  mainly  accordant  with  the  Westminster.  The  views 
expressed  on  ecclesiastical  polity  were  those  of  their  con- 
stitutions. The  question  of  revision  and  republication  was 
•brought  up  in  1819  and  1824.     It  was  deemed  inexpedient. 


88  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

At  the  session  of  May,  1801,  a  proposition  was  presented 
from  the  Northern  Presbytery  for  "a  representation  in  the 
General  Association  of  Connecticut."  The  reasons  for  the 
proposed  change  were  not  given.  January  12,  1802,  it  was 
decided  to  be  inexpedient.  The  convention  (we  presume,  of 
correspondence  held  at  Po'keepsie  in  1805)  proposed  a  gen- 
eral confederation  between  this  Presbytery,  the  Northern 
and  the  three  Western  Associations  of  this  State.  The  pur- 
pose was  to  increase  the  general  usefulness  of  these  bodies, 
especially  in  mission  work.  Co-operation  and  organization 
on  a  larger  scale  than  yet  attempted  was  thought  necessary. 
Messrs.  Cornwall  and  Constant  were  appointed  to  attend  a 
convention  in  the  interest  of  such  a  union,  provided  one 
should  be  called  by  the  bodies  mentioned.  A  convention 
was  appointed  to  be  held  at  Harpersfield.  In  view  of  it  a 
committee,  consisting"  of  Messrs.  Constant  and  Dodd,  were 
appointed,  Oct.  i,  1806,  by  this  Presbytery  to  draft  the 
principles  of  a  confederation.  The  committee  reported  the 
following  as  instructions  to  their  delegates : 

"  I.  That  the  Presbyteries  or  Associations  be  left  to  regulate  their  own 
internal  matters  according  to  their  wisdom  without  any  general  directory. 

"2.  That  there  be  no  accountability  to  the  General  Association  as  an 
authoritative  judicature. 

"  3.  That  the  General  Association  may  recommend  things  to  the  several 
or  particular  I'resbyteries  —  advice,  counsel,  etc. 

"4.  That  the  subject  of  a  general  missionary  society  be  considered  and 
agreed  on,  if  found  consistent. 

"5.  That  the  subject  of  a  magazine  be  taken  into  consideration.  And 
considering  the  situation  of  those  western  parts  of  the  country  and  the  incon- 
venience attending  the  acquisition  of  those  valuable  publications  in  other  parts, 
and  the  advantages  arising  from  those  periodical  publications,  not  only  as  a 
means  of  disseminating  useful  knowledge,  but,  if  properly  regulated,  as  a  val- 
uable means  for  obtaining  pecuniary  sup]3ort  for  missionary  interest,  we  think 
it  desiralile,  therefore,  that  such  a  work  should  be  set  forward,  leaving  the  sub- 
ject to  the  wisdom  of  the  General  Association,  if  such  Association  should  take 
place. 

"6.  That  the  respective  Presbyteries  or  Associations  shall  have  a  right  to 
recommend  subjects  to  the  consideration  of  the  General  Association,  and  to 
apply  to  them  at  any  stated  meeting  for  counsel  and  advice."  [Constitution 
and  Records,  pp.  126-7.] 

Nothing  seems  to  have  resulted  from  the  movement,  be-* 
cause  we  find  a  complaint  entered  upon  the  minutes  against 


THE    GENERAL    ASSOCIATION    OF    CONNECTICUT.  89 

the  Northern  Presbytery  for  failure  to  keep  appointments, 
"especially  that  of  Harpcrsfield." 

The  action  of  the  Presbytery,  October  17,  1821,  shows 
that  the  Morris  County  Presbytery  had  practically  ceased  to 
exist.  It  is  stated  in  answer  to  the  delegate  from  Middle- 
town,  who  inquired  about  the  relation  of  the  churches  con- 
nected with  that   organization  to  this,  that 

"  Whereas  the  Presbytery  of  Morris  County  is  so  situated  as  to  i>reclude  the 

possibility  of  their  meeting  soon,     .     .     . 

"  Therefore  this  Presbytery  agrees  to  aid  such  churches  by  acknowledging 
the  relation  and  extending  that  care  and  affording  such  aid  as  the  circumstances 
of  the  churches  may  require  and  Presbytery  be  able  tf)  give;  and  in  order  to 
this,  I'resbytery  invites  them  to  attend  by  delegation  all  the  meetings  of 
Presbytery;  and  agrees  to  meet  in  these  churches,  when  convenient."  [Con- 
stitution and  Records,  p.  237.] 

The  Saratoga  Presbytery  had  ceased  to  exist  September, 
18 1 8.  We  hear  nothing  further  of  the  Northern  Presbytery. 
The  question  now  presented  itself  to  the  Westchester  Pres- 
bytery, to  what  ecclesiastical  body  were  they  to  look  for 
fellowship  and  co-operation.  Very  naturally  they  turned  to 
their  nearest  of  kin,  the  (ieneral  Association  of  Connecticut. 
April  17.  1822,  Mr.  Constant  called  attention  to  "the  pro- 
priety of  incorporating  themselves  and  the  several  churches 
under  their  care  in  connection  with  the  (leneral  Association 
of  Connecticut."     After  consideration  it  was  voted 

"  That  such  a  connection  and  relation  is  in  their  opinion  highly  desirable 
and  would  be  very  advantageous  to  the  promotion  of  the  usefulness  of  this 
body  and  to  the  general  interest  of  Zion."     [Constitution  and  Records,  p.  240.] 

The  question  was  referred  to  the  churches  for  decision. 
Messrs.  Constant  and  McLaughlin  were  ajJi^ointed  to  draft 
a  memorial  to  be  presented  to  the  General  Association  of 
Connecticut.  At  this  time  there  were  in  connection  with  the 
Presbytery  thirteen  ministers  and  apparently  nine  churches 
—  Yorktown,  Red  Mills,  Pound  Ridge,  Gilead,  Middletown, 
Peekskill,  Monroe,  Greenburgh,  and  Mt.  Pleasant.  At  the 
next  session,  held  September  17,  1822,  reports  were  received 
from  both  the  churches  and  the  committee,  and  it  was  voted 
in  view  of  want  of  information  a  committee  be  appointed 


90  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

to  attend  the  next  meeting  of  the  Fairfield  East  Consocia- 
tion to  secure  it.  An  extra  session  was  called  for  October 
28th  at  North  Salem  to  hear  the  report  of  the  committee. 
Two  members  of  the  Consociation  were  present.  After 
discussion  it  was  resolved 

"  That  the  ministers  of  this  Presbytery  form  themselves  into  an  Association 
at  a  proper  time  and  present  their  memorial  for  a  union  with  the  [General] 
Association  at  their  next  session  at  Bridgeport  on  the  last  Wednesday  in 
May,  1823."     [Constitution  and  Records,  p.  254.] 

As  no  further  mention  of  the  subject  is  made  in  the 
records,  we  presume  that  nothing  was  accomplished. 

The  connection  of  the  North  Stamford  (Conn.)  Church 
ceased  soon  after  the  death  of  Amzi  Lewis  in  1819.  Of 
those  which  were  regarded  as  under  the  watch  and  care  of 
the  Presbytery,  were  represented  by  delegates  at  the  meet- 
ings, and  applied  for  advice  and  supplies,  one  after  another 
withdrew  and  connected  themselves  with  other  bodies.  They 
were  influenced  in  the  change  by  a  variety  of  motives.  In 
some  instances  it  was  distance.  In  others  stipulations  in 
deeds  may  have  had  to  do  with  it  (New  Marlborough). 
Some  of  the  churches  contained  a  strong  Presbyterian  ele- 
ment, while  to  others  the  terms  Presbytei-ian  and  Congrega- 
tional were  almost  synonymous.  The  Associated  Presbyte- 
ries represented  no  distinctive  idea  in  theology  or  polity. 
They  were  Presbyterian  only  in  name,  in  principle  Congre- 
gational—  less  Presbyterian  than  the  Congregational  Conso- 
ciations of  Connecticut  and  not  essentially  different  from 
those  of  Massachusetts  Associations.  In  the  counties  adja- 
cent to  the  Hudson  River,  Presbyterianism  was  making  a 
rapid  growth. 

The  binding  force  in  the  Associated  Westchester  Pres- 
bytery was  the  personal  influence  of  its  leaders.  John 
Townley  had  died  March  i,  1812,  and  John  Cornwall  had  fol- 
lowed nine  days  later.  Amzi  Lewis  had  passed  away  April  5, 
1819.  Silas  Constant  had  entered  into  rest  March  22,  1825. 
Most  of  the  churches  in  Connecticut  had  connected  them- 
selves with  organizations  holding  the  same  polity  nearer  at 


DISSOLUTION    OF    THE    PKESIiYTEKY.  9 1 

hand.  The  church  at  Cornwall,  the  offspring  of  a  church 
quarrel,  had  returned  to  the  Litchfield  North  Consociation, 
May  13,  1807.  The  following  churches  had  united  with  the 
Presbytery  of  Hudson  :  New  Marlborough  and  New  Paltz, 
April  18,  1810;  Amenia,  April  19,  1815;  Po'keepsie,  April 
16,  1817;  Ridgebury,  April  17,  1816;  Middletown,  April 
20,  1824;  Monroe,  September  9,  1829;  Pound  Ridge  was 
received  under  the  care  of  the  Presbytery  of  North  River, 
September  17,  1822.  Mt.  Pleasant  united  with  the  Presby- 
tery of  New  York  August  2,  181 1.  Called  to  account  for 
employing  a  deposed  minister  (probably  George  Bourne),  it 
returned  to  the  Associated  Westchester  October  5,  1820. 
It  was  reorganized  and  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  New 
York  October  10,.  1826.  The  First  Independent  and  Rose 
Street  Churches  of  New  York  City  were  received  by  the 
same  body  October  10,  182 1,  and  April  16,  1822,  respec- 
tively. The  ministers  united  with  other  bodies  without 
formal  dismission. 

At  the  meeting  held  May,  1827,  a  minute  was  adopted 
in  which  mention  is  made  of  the  smallness  of  the  Pres- 
bytery and  the  non-attendance  of  members,  and  an  agree- 
ment was  entered  into  to  attend  to  their  duties  more  faith- 
fully. A  circular  letter  was  also  addressed  to  "those 
churches  which  have  been  in  covenant  with  this  Presbytery, 
and  have  not  withdrawn  their  relation."  These  were  Red 
Mills,  Yorktown,  Gilead,  North  Salem,  Somers,  and  Peeks- 
kill.  At  this  date  there  are  only  the  names  of  si.\  ministers 
on  the  roll— Allan  l^lair  (Red  Mills),  Samuel  N.  Phelps 
(Ridgefield,  Conn.),  Hosea  Pall  (Highlands,  (Grange  County, 
N.  Y.),  Daniel  Jones  (Yorktown),  Isaac  Allerton,  and 
Richard  W  Knight. 

The  question  of  withdrawal  in  order  to  unite  with  other 
bodies  agitated  the  churches  of  North  Salem  and  Red 
Mills  in  1828.  The  former  deemed  it  for  its  interest  to 
unite  with  the  Presbytery  of  North  River,  while  the  latter 
contemplated  a  connection  with  the  Second  Presbytery  of 
New  York.  The  North  Salem  Church  was  advised  to  wait 
until  the  next  session,  and  was  promised  supplies  and  a  dis- 


92  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

missal.  At  Red  Mills  the  majority  favored  a  change  and 
the  minority  asked  advice.  They  were  urged  to  avoid  a 
division.  At  the  next  meeting  held  at  Peekskill  September, 
1828,  the  North  Salem  Church  was  dismissed  to  the  Pres- 
bytery of  North  River,  to  which  it  had  applied  for  reorgani- 
zation on  September  23,  1824.  The  church  at  Red  Mills 
was  advised  to  prevent,  if  possible,  division,  and  to  apply  to 
the  Second  Presbytery  of  New  York  to  be  received  with 
permission  to  retain  the  Congregational  form  of  govern- 
ment.    It  was  received  and  reorganized. 

The  last  meeting  of  the  Presbytery  was  held  at  Peeks- 
kill  June  2,  1830.  There  were  present  Hosea  Ball,  Israel 
Hammond,  Richard  N.  Dey,  and  Delegate  St.  John  Con- 
stant of  Peekskill.  A  resolution  was  passed  dissolving  the 
Presbytery.  Mr.  Ball  was  dismissed  to  the  Presbytery  of 
North  River  and  Messrs.  Hammond  and  Dey  to  the  Re- 
formed Dutch  Classis  of  New  York.  The  church  at  Peeks- 
kill  was  advised  to  unite  with  the  latter  body.  It  became 
the  Reformed  Dutch  Church. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    SKETCHES. 

SILAS    CONSTANT. 

Silas  Constant  was  the  son  of  Col.  Joseph  Constant,  an 
officer  of  the  P^rench  army,  who,  in  March,  1749,  married 
Susan  Tirrell,  an  orphan,  daughter  of  Elijah  Tirrell,  a  rich 
merchant  of  Salem,  Mass.  Soon  after  his  marriage  Col. 
Constant  sailed  for  P" ranee  for  the  purpose  of  arranging  his 
affairs  there.  The  ship  in  which  he  took  passage  is  sup- 
posed to  have  foundered  at  sea,  as  no  tidings  were  ever 
heard  of  it.  On  the  15th  January,  1750,  at  Waterbury, 
Conn.,  a  fatherless  boy  was  born,  and  named  Silas.  The 
young  mother  died  shortly  after  of  a  broken  heart,  bequeath- 
ing the  care  of  her  son  to  a  married  sister,  Mrs.  Bebce. 

In  1770,  Mr.  Constant  married  his  second  cousin,  Amy, 
daughter  of  John  Lewis  of  Waterbury,  Conn.     Here  and  at 


BIOGRAPHICAL    SKETCHES.  93 

Salem,  Conn.,  where  he  owned  a  farm,  he  appears  to  have 
resided  until  past  his  thirtieth  year,  when  he  gave  himself 
to  the  ministry  of  the  Gospel.  It  is  conjectured  that  he 
pursued  his  theological  studies  under  the  direction  of  Rev. 
Jacob  Green,  of  Hanover,  N.  J.  May  29,  1783,  he  was 
ordained  as  an  evangelist  by  the  Presbytery  of  Morris 
County.  Prior  to  his  ordination,  he  seems  to  have  labored 
at  Chester,  Orange  County,  N.  Y.,  and  had  gathered  a  con- 
gregation there  by  March  of  that  year. 

He  also  labored  at  Monroe  in  the  same  county,  where  on 
May  17,  1784,  he  and  Amzi  Lewis  organized  a  church  with 
seventeen  members.  November,  1785,  he  was  engaged  as 
stated  su]3ply  for  one  year  by  the  Vorktown  Church.  May 
10,  1786,  he  became  "advisory  member"  of  the  Presbytery 
of  Dutchess  County.  He  was  called  to  the  pastorate  of  the 
church  November  8,  1786,  and  soon  after  installed.  May  8, 
1792,  he  united  with  the  Associated  Westchestei"  Pres- 
bytery. His  connection  with  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess 
county  ceased  May  8,  1794.  After  the  civil  courts  had 
given  possession  of  the  church  property  to  the  Presbyterians, 
he  ministered  to  the  congregation  that  worshiped  in  the 
new  meeting-house.  He  died  March  22,  1825,  aged  75 
years,  2  months,  and  9  days.  His  remains  were  interred  by 
the  Congregational  Church  in  which  he  preached.  Mr. 
Constant's  first  wife  died  July  4,  1805.  There  were  four 
children  by  this  marriage,  two  sons  and  two  daughters.  He 
married  a  second  time. 

"  Silas  Constant  was  a  tall,  well  proportioned  man,  and 
of  a  commanding  appearance.  He  had  a  limited  education, 
but  had  gathered  much  information  from  reading  books  on 
various  topics.  He  had  much  shrewdness,  was  a  ready 
speaker,  and  preeminently  the  leader  of  the  Presbytery  to 
which  he  belonged.  In  his  intercourse  with  his  neighbors 
he  was  kind  and  obliging,  and  his  daily  walk  and  conversa- 
tion was  without  reproach."  He  preached  without  notes. 
As  a  pastor  he  was  very  efficient,  his  \isits  combining  in 
happy  medium  the   social   and   pastoral.     His   labors  were 


94  THE    ASSOCIATED    WESTCHESTER    PRESBYTERY. 

abundant.  The  records  of  the  Associated  Westchester 
Presbytery,  in  an  obituary  minute,  state  that  "during  the 
thirty-three  years  of  which  he  was  a  member  of  this  l^res- 
bytery  he  was  not  only  present,  but  took  part  in  its  con- 
cerns, and  was  not  for  once  absent  at  the  opening  of  the 
Presbytery. 

AMZI    LEWIS. 

Amzi  Lewis  was  born  at  Waterbury,  Conn.,  October  29, 
1746.  He  graduated  at  Yale  College  in  1768.  He  was 
ordained  and  installed  pastor  of  the  churches  of  Florida 
and  Warwick,  Orange  County,  N.  Y.,  April  9,  1772.  After 
service  of  five  years  he  was  released  from  the  latter ;  he 
continued  with  the  former  ten  years  longer.  In  1787  he 
removed  to  North  Salem,  Westchester  County,  N.  Y.,  and 
became  principal  of  the  academy  and  stated  supply  of  the 
church.  March  12,  1795,  he  was  called  to  the  North  Stam- 
ford (Conn.)  Church  at  a  salary  of  "one  hundred  pounds 
lawful  money  .  .  .  and  fifteen  cords  of  good  wood 
yearly."  He  was  probably  installed'  a  few  months  later. 
He  remained  with  this  church  until  his  death,  which  took 
place  April  5,  18 19.  He  was  in  the  73d  year  of  his  age 
and  the  twenty-fourth  of  his  pastorate. 

The  Presbytery  bears  testimony  to  him  as  one  "whose 
person  we  loved,  as  a  brother  in  the  ministry  whose  charac- 
ter we  revered  as  a  Christian,  as  a  counsellor  and  a  pattern 
of  fidelity,  and  whose  memory  we  would  perpetuate  as  the 
last  among  the  number  of  those  who  first  composed  the 
Presbytery  of  which  we  are  now  members.  But  while  we 
lament  our  loss,  yet,  wishing  to  be  reconciled  to  the  dis- 
pensation, and  rejoicing  in  his  gain,  we  would  hear  the  voice, 
Be  ye  also  ready." 


CHAPTER  X. 


Cliunlies  loider  the  care  of  the  Presbyteries  of  Hudson,  New 
York,  and  North  River,  1795- 1829. 

BETWEEN  1795  and  1829,  the  dates  respectively  of  the 
dissolution  of  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County  and 
of  the  erection  of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  the  jurisdiction 
of  three  Presbyteries  connected  with  the  General  Assembly, 
Hudson,  New  York,  and  North  River,  extended  into  the 
field  of  the  present  Presbytery  of  Westchester.  October  22, 
1795,  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  New  Jersey  erected  the 
Presbytery  of  Hudson. 

"  Resolved,  That  all  the  ministers  belonging  to  the  Presbytery  of  New 
York  within  the  following  bounds,  namely,  the  middle  of  the  Southern  moun- 
tains in  Orange  County,  and  the  Southern  bounds  of  the  Presbytery  of  Albany, 
on  the  west  side  of  the  river  Hudson,  and  all  the  ministers  of  the  Dutchess 
Presbytery,  together  with  all  the  churches  within  their  bounds,  be  erected  into 
a  Presbytery  by  the  name  of  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson. 

"Whereu])on,  The  Synod  did  dissolve  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess,  and 
erected  the  ministers  and  churches  within  the  above  bounds  into  a  separate 
Presliytery. under  the  name  of  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson.     And 

"  Ordered,  That  said  Presbytery  meet  the  first  time  in  Franklin,  on  the 
third  Tuesday  of  November  next,  at  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  and  that  Mr. 
Mcail  open  the  i'resbyterv  and  preside  'till  a  nioderator  be  chosen,  and  in  case 
of  his  absence,  the  senior  minister  present." 

The  Presbytery  met  accordingly  at  Franklin,  November 
17,  1795,  and,  in  the  absence  of  Solomon  Mead,  the  sermon 
was  preached  by  Nathan  Ker  from  Ps.  46 : 5.  Se\en  of  oin- 
churches  came  under  their  care,  Salem,  Union,  Bedford, 
Franklin,  Pound  Ridge,  Yorktown,  and  Peekskill.  Pound 
Ridge  was  represented  at  the  session  of  April  20,  1796, 
when  Mr.  Lockwood,  its  representative,  paid  2.\-.  towards  the 
presbyterial  expenses.     Soon  after  it  became  connected  with 


96  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    NEW    YORK. 

the  Associated  Presbytery.  In  1806  Yorktown  was  enrolled. 
April  22,  1809,  Union,  at  their  own  request,  was  dismissed 
to  the  Fairfield  East  Consociation.  The  Peekskill  congre- 
gation contributed,  April,  1812,  to  the  fund  for  missionaries, 
and,  April,  1815,  was  taken  under  the  care  of  Presbytery, 
and  supplies  api3ointed  at  three  succeeding  meetings.  Sep- 
tember 6,  1 81 6,  "the  Presbyterian  Union  Society  of  Somers" 
requested  supplies.  They  were  appointed  at  three  succeed, 
ing  meetings. 

October  5,  1809,  the  Presbytery  of  New  York  was 
reorganized  and  its  boundaries  defined  as  follows  : 

"  That  so  much  of  the  Presbytery  of  New  York  as  lies  east  of  the  Hud- 
son River  and  south  of  the  towns  of  Bedford,  Yorktown,  and  Peekskill  in 
Westchester  County,  and  so  much  of  the  Presbytery  of  Long  Island  as  lies 
west  of  Hempstead  Plains,  including  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  Rogers,  Mr.  George 
Faitoute,  Mr.  Nathan  Woodhull,  Mr.  Peter  Fish,  Dr.  Samuel  Miller,  Dr. 
Philip  Milledoler,  Mr.  John  McNiece,  Dr.  John  B.  Romeyn,  and  Mr.  William 
P.  Kuypers,  be  constituted  a  Presbytery  by  the  name  of  "  The  Presbytery  of 
New  York.' " 

The  effects  of  the  Revolutionary  War  upon  southern 
Westchester,  the  desolation  and  religious  destitution,  have 
been  already  alluded  to.  Thirty  years  made  but  little  im- 
provement. In  1 81 2,  according  to  Dr.  D wight,  it  was  de- 
clared by  the  Missionary  Society  of  New  York  to  be 
"proper  missionary  ground,"  and  a  missionary  was  directed 
to  devote  his  labors  to  this  section  alone.  About  the  same 
time  the  I'resbytery  of  New  York  called  the  attention  of 
the  General  Assembly  to  it.  Walter  King  was  appointed 
to  labor  there,  and  through  his  instrumentality  the  old  P'rench 
Church  at  New  Rochelle  was  revived  and  reorganized  as  the 
I^resbyterian  Church,  March  30,  181 2,  and  received  under 
the  care  of  Presbytery  April  21  following.  He  also  labored 
at  West  Farms. 

In  1814  Isaac  Lewis  was  appointed  by  the  General  As- 
sembly to  labor  in  the  same  section  under  the  direction  of 
the  Presbytery  of  New  York.  From  1814-1818  he  divided 
his  time  between  West  Farms  and  New  Rochelle.  A  house 
of  worship  was  completed  at  the  former  place  in  181 5  and  a 


THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  NEW  YORK,  97 

church  of  four  members  organized  Dec.  4,  18 16.  By  Mr, 
Lewis'  advice  a  Presbyterian  organization  was  completed  by 
the  election  of  officers  Nov.  5,  1818.  He  left  these  two 
churches  a  few  weeks  later  to  take  charge  of  the  Congrega- 
tional Society  in  Greenwich,  Conn.  Provision  for  a  limited 
time  was  made  by  the  General  Assembly  in  1820.  Two 
years  later  the  Presbytery  of  New  York  took  the  work  in 
hand  and  appointed  a  committee  to  examine  into  the  desti- 
tution within  their  bounds,  embracing  the  west  end  of  Long 
Island,  southern  Westchester,  and  the  city  and  county  of 
New  York.  They  reported  from  fifty  to  seventy  thousand 
souls  unconnected  with  any  Christian  denomination.  To 
supply  with  the  means  of  grace  these  destitute  regions 
"  The  Presbyterian  Society  "  was  established  by  the  Presby- 
tery. By  April,  1823,  this  Society  had  districted  their  ter- 
ritory and  assigned  it  to  the  various  churches,  in  many  of 
which  au.xiliaries  had  been  formed.  It  was  proposed  to  oc- 
cupy two  points  in  the  county  of  Westchester,  Rye  and 
White  Plains. 

During  the  Revolution  the  population  of  these  places 
had  been  scattered  and  the  churches  burned.  No  stated 
religious  services  had  been  held.  The  Rye  church  was  re- 
built in  1793,  and  June  5,  1795,  "The  Presbyterian  Church 
of  Rye  "  was  incorporated.  From  the  death  of  John  Smith 
in  February,  1771,  to  the  coming  of  Noah  C.  Sa.xton,  in 
1828,  there  seems  to  have  been  neither  pastor  nor  stated 
supply.  The  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County  appointed  oc- 
casional supplies.  No  service  by  ministers  of  our  own 
denomination  being  held  in  the  meeting-house,  it  was  occu- 
pied by  the  Methodists  from  18 12  to  1828.  The  right  of 
the  Presbyterian  congregation  to  the  property  was  estab- 
lished and  it  passed  again  into  their  possession.  In  182 1, 
Ebenezer  Clark,  a  retired  merchant  of  New  York,  removed 
to  Rye.  The  church  enlisted  his  sympathies  at  once,  and  in 
the  plans  of  "  The  Presbyterian  Society  "  without  doubt  he 
took  a  deep  interest.  Noah  C.  Saxton  was  secured  as  a 
stated  supply  in  December,  1828.  March  4,  1829,  a  church 
13 


98  THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  NEW  YORK. 

was  organized  by  a  committee  of  the  Presbytery  of  New 
York,  and  enrolled  April  2rst. 

At  White  Plains  occasional  services  were  held  in  the 
Court  House  until  1820,  when  Rev.  Thomas  G.  Smith,  pas- 
tor of  the  Reformed  Dutch  Church  of  Tarrytown,  was  en- 
gaged to  preach  every  second  or  third  Sunday.  A  church 
was  organized  April  25,  1824,  and  received  under  the  care 
of  the  Presbytery  of  New  York,  October  21st.  Soon  after 
a  house  of  worship  was  erected  on  the  site  of  the  one  de- 
stroyed in  1776.  In  1788  a  Congregational  Church  was 
gathered  at  Hall's  Corners  (now  PZlmsford)  in  the  town  of 
Greenburgh.  Under  the  ministry  of  John  Townley  it  came 
under  the  care  of  the  Associated  Westchester  Presbytery 
under  the  name  of  the  Greenburgh  Church.  June  18,  1825, 
it  was  re-organized  as  a  Presbyterian  Church  and  received 
under  the  care  of  the  Presbytery  of  New  York  October 
nth,  following.  April  11,  1825,  a  church  was  organized  at 
"South  Greenburgh"  (now  Dobbs  Ferry).  It  was  enrolled 
by  the  same  Presbytery  April  22d.  The  Peekskill  and  Mt. 
Pleasant  Churches  were  enrolled,  as  has  been  stated,  June 
28  and  October  10,  1826,  respectively. 

The  Presbytery  of  Hudson  began  existence  in  1795  with 
eight  ministers  and  sixteen  churches.  New  organizations 
had  been  effected,  where  the  needs  of  the  people  required 
it.  Congregations  formerly  connected  with  the  Associated 
Westchester  Presbytery  and  other  bodies  cast  in  their  lot 
with  the  new  Presbytery.  In  18 19  there  were  twenty-five 
ministers  and  forty-one  churches  on  the  rolls.  Prior  to  this 
date,  in  181 2,  the  question  of  dividing  the  Presbytery  was 
broached.  Application  was  made  to  the  Synod  in  September, 
1 8 16,  to  set  off  eight  ministers  and  all  the  churches  east  of 
the  river  as  a  separate  body  to  be  called  the  Presbytery  of 
Hudson.  It  was  withdrawn  later.  October  23,  18 19,  it  was 
voted 

"  That  application  be  made  to  the  Synod,  now  in  session,  to  divide  the 
Presbytery  of  Hudson  so  that  the  Rev.  Messrs.  John  Clark,  Joshua  Spaulding, 
Ebenezer  Grant,  Thomas  I'icton,  John  Johnston,  Eli  Hyde,  Eliphalet  Price, 
Joel  Osborn,  James  I.  Ostrom,  Daniel  Crane,  Robert  G.  Armstrong,  including 


THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    HUDSON.  99 

the  congregations  of  New  Windsor,  Newburgh,  Marlborough,  New  Paltz, 
Pleasant  Valley  (west),  Pittsburgh,  Wappings  Creek,  Fishkill,  Patterson, 
Salem,  Yorktown,  Pine  Plains,  Amenia,  North,  Amenia,  South,  Smithfielcl, 
l*leasant  Valley,  Bedford  and  Po'keepsie,  be  constituted  a  new  Presbytery  to 
be  known  by  the  name  of  the  Presbytery  of  North  River,  and  that  their  first 
meeting  be  held  at  Patterson,  on  the  first  Wednesday  in  November,  at  three 
o'clock  P.  M.,  and  the  Rev  Mr.  Spaulding,  or,  in  case  of  his  absence,  the  senior 
minister  present,  preach  and  preside  till  a  Moderator  be  chosen."' 

This  application  was  granted  and  the  new  Presbytery 
was  erected  accordingly. 

The  Pound  Ridge  Church,  which  had  been  connected 
with  the  Associated  Westchester  Presbytery,  made  applica- 
tion, May  7,  1822,  to  be  recognized  as  a  Presbyterian  congre- 
gation and  taken  under  the  care  of  Presbytery.  They  re- 
quested reorganization  and  a  committee  was  appointed  for 
the  purpose.  September  17th,  on  the  recommendation  of 
the  committee,  the  church  was  enrolled.  September  23, 
1824,  a  request  for  reorganization  was  presented  by  the 
North  Salem  Church,  and  a  committee  appointed.  The  re- 
quest was  repeated  April,  1827,  and  a  second  committee  ap- 
pointed which  reported  progress  every  six  months,  until 
September,  1829.  The  South  East  Church  was  received 
upon  a  certificate  of  dismission  from  the  Fairfield  East 
Consociation,  April  26,  1825.  Rev.  Marcus  Harrison, 
pastor  of  the  church,  was  enrolled  September  21st,  follow- 
ing. 

THE    LIST   OF   CHURCHES. 

PRESBYTERY    OF    HUDSON. 

Name.  Enrolled.  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies.  Term  of  Service. 

I.  Salem,  Nov.  17, 1795,  Solomon  Mead,  P.,  <  g J  ~  '    y^~ 

Lower  Salem,  Supi)lied  by  Presbytery,*  1S00-1S02 

South  Salem,  Robert  Chapman.  S.  S.,      Sei>t.  7, 'c2-Apr., '03 

Osborn,  S.  S.,  1803 

T  u     T?i     Tj  \       Nov.  28,  1S04- 

^^"^■'y'P"  I          Dec.  10,  181 1 

Charles  F.  Butler,  S.  S.,  18 12 

Jacob  Burbank,  S.  S.,  Sept.  22,  1813-1S17 

Charles  F.  Butler,  S.  S.,  1817-June  11,  1S20 


•Supplies  appointed. 


100 


THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    NEW    YORK. 


Name. 
2.  Union, 
South  East, 


3.  Bedford, 


4.  Franklin, 
Patterson, 


5.  Pound  Ridge, 

6.  Yorktown, 


7.  Peekskill, 


Enrolled.  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies. 

Nov.  17, 1795,  Jshu  Minor,  P., 

Bradford  Marcy,  P., 
Joel  Osborn,  S.  S., 

«  "        P., 

Joshua  Spaulding,  S.  S., 
Nov.  17,  1795,  Samuel  Blatchford,  S.  S., 

Josiah  Henderson,  P., 

Ebenezer  Grant,  P., 

Nov.  17,  1795,  Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 
Benjanain  Judd,  S.  S., 
John  Clark,  S.  S., 
Jason  Perkins,  S.  S., 
John  McNiece,  S.  S., 
Hertnan  Dagget,  S.  S., 
Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 
Abner  Brundage,  S.  S., 

Nov.  17,  1795,  Samuel  Blatchford,  S.  S., 

Sept.  3,  1S06,  Andrew  Thompson,  P., 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 
Robert  G.  Armstrong,  S.  S. 
Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 
Apr.        1S15,         "  "         * 


Term  of  Service. 
(  Feb.  I,  1792- 

(  July  5,  1808 

June  7,  '09-Oct.,  '10 

1811-1813 

(        Dec.  22,  1813- 

)  Aug.  3,  1814 

1816-1S22 

1795-1796 

Nov.  15,  179S- 

Nov.  15,  1803 

Sept.  20,  1804- 

Sept.  6,  1S21 

1795-1799 

Sept.,  1799-1800 

Ma}-,  1S00-1801 

1802-1803 

1 804- 1 808 

May,  1808-1814 

1814-Sept.,  1819 

1819 

1795-1796 

June  7,  1808- 

Apr.  20,  1814 

iSi4-0ct.,  1818 

1818-1819 

1S19 

1S15-1816 


PRESBYTERY    OF    NEW    YORK. 

Mt.  Pleasant,    Aug.    2,  iSii,  Thomas  Jackson,  P., 

Sing  Sing,  William  Gray,  A.  P., 

Asa  Lyman,  S.  S., 
George  Bourne,  S.  S., 

New  Rochelle,  Apr.  21,  1812,  Isaac  Lewis,  S.  S., 

Elijah  D.  Wells,  S.  S., 
Joseph  D.  Wickham,  S.  S., 
George  Stebbins,  S.  S  , 

West  Farms,  IsaacLewis,  S.  S., 

Freeman  Osborne,  S.  S., 


Joseph  B.  Felt,  S.  S., 

Samuel  Nott,  S.  S., 

Thomas  S.  Wickes,  S.  S.,  July, '22-Dec.  21, '24 

Joseph  D.  Wickham,  S.S.,June  i,'25-Junei,'28 


Aug.2,'ii-Jan.i2,'i7 

(         Jan.  16,  1816- 

(  May  17,  1816 

1819 

1819-1822 

1814-1818 

1823-1825 

1825-1828 

1829-1835 

i8r4-Nov.,  1818 

J        Dec.  19,  181S- 

\  May  11;,  1820 

j       Sept.  14,  1S20- 

(  Nov.  13,  1820 

Nov.,  1821-May,  '22 


Supplies  appointed. 


THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    NORTH    RIVER. 


lOI 


Name.                     Enrolled.           Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies.  Term  of  Service. 

4.  White  Plains,  Oct.  21,  1824,  Thomas  G.  Smith,  S.  S.,  1820-1822 

Marcus  Harrison,  H.  M.,  1823 

Ely,  H.  M.,  1823 

Samuel  Robertson,  S.  S.,  Nov.,  1823-Oct.,  '25 

Chester  Long,  S.  S.,  Oct.,  i825-Oct.,i833 

5.  S.Greenburgh,  Apr.  22,  1S25,                 Ely,  H.  M.,  1823 

Samuel  Robertson,  S.  S.,  Apr.,i825-Oct.,i825 

Chester  Long,  S.  S.,  Oct.,i825-Apr.,i82S 

6.  Greenburgh,     Oct.    11,1825, 

7.  Peekskill,  June  28,  1826,  John  H.  Leggett,  P.,  \  Nov.  "O  1829 

8.  Mt.  Pleasant,    Oct.   10,  1826,  Jonathan  Dickerson,  S.  S.,  1826-1829 

9.  Rye,  Apr.  21, 1829,  Noah  C.  Saxton,  S.  S.,        Dec.,i82S-May,iS29 

Wms.  H.Whittemore,  S.S.,May,i829-Apr.,i832 

PRESHYTERV    OF    NORTH    RIVER. 

I.  Patterson,         Nov.    3,  1S19,  Abner  Brundage,  S.  S.,  1819 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  1820-1822 

Edward  McLaughlin,  S.  S.,Apr.,'22-Sept.i9,'22 

Michael  Quinn,  S.  S.,  1S23 

..up       )   Sept.  23,  1824- 

I     Aug.  3,  1825 

Epenetus  P.  Benedict,  S.S.,Apr.,'26-Sept.30,'29 

»         p        j       Sept.  30,  1829- 

^•'      j  Apr.  19,  1865 

Sept.,i82i-Apr.,  '22 

(       Apr.  17,  1822- 

\  Apr.  18,  1827 

j        June  14,  1827- 

I  Apr.  16,  1834 

j       Sept.  20,  1S04- 

(  Sept.  6,  182 1 

j        A])r.  16,  1822- 

/  Jan.  25,  1S48 

1817-June  II,  1820 

j        June  II,  1S20- 

I  Sept.  18, 1822 

/  May  I,  1823- 

\  Apr.  16,  1834 

1822 

Sept.,  1S23-1S24 

Apr.,  1825-Apr.,  '28 

Apr.,i82S-Sept.,  '28 

Apr.,  1829-Apr.,  '30 

(         Oct.  21,  1824- 
(  Apr.  26,  1826 


2.  Yorktown,         Nov.    3,  1S19,  Asahel  Bronson,  S.  S., 

P., 

Richard  Wynkoop,  P  , 

3.  Bedford,  Nov.   3,  18 19,  Ebenezer  Grant,  P., 

Jacob  Green,  P., 

4.  Salem,  Nov.   3,  1819,  Charles  F.  Butler,  S.  S., 
Lower  Salem,  Charles  F.  Butler,  P., 

South  Salem,  Stephen  Saunders,  P., 

5.  Poundridge,      Sept.  17, 1822,  John  Hendricks,  S.  S., 

Asahel  Bronson,  S.  S., 
Daniel  Crocker,  S.  S., 
Hawiey,  S.  S., 
Henry  Dean,  S.  S., 

6.  North  Salem,   Sept.  23, 1824, 

7.  South  East,       Apr.  26,  1825,  Marcus  Harrison,  P., 


Abraham  O.  Stansbury,  P.,  \       ^^^^-  'j.  1S27- 
■"       '  (  Nov.  25,  1828 

Robert  B.  E.  McLeod,S.S.,Apr.,iS29-Dec.S,'3o 


'Supplies  appointed. 


4 

CHAPTER  XL 


The  Presbytery  of  Bedford. 

THE  churches  in  the  counties  contiguous  to  the  Hudson 
were  increasing  in  number.  Within  our  bounds  the 
churches  of  White  Plains  and  Rye  and  the  old  French 
Church  at  New  Rochelle  had  been  revived  and  reorganized. 
New  congregations  had  been  gathered  at  West  Farms  and 
South  Greenburg.  The  Congregational  Church  of  Green- 
burg  had  become  Presbyterian.  There  seemed  to  be  a 
necessity  for  a  new  Presbytery.  Accordingly  at  a  meeting  of 
the  Synod  of  New  York,  held  in  the  city  of  New  York, 
Oct.  22,  1829,  the  following  action  was  taken  : 

"  Resolved  that  the  Synod  erect  a  new  Presbytery  by  the  name  of 
Bedford,  including  all  the  ministers  and  congregations  belonging  to  this  Synod 
in  the  counties  of  Westchester  and  Putnam,  excepting  Cold  Spring  and  South 
Salem,  viz.,  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Jacob  Green,  Stephen  Saunders,  Richard  Wyn- 
koop,  Epenetus  P.  Benedict,  Charles  F.  Butler,  Thomas  Picton;  and  the  con- 
gregations of  Bedford,  Yorktown,  Patterson,  South  East,  Pound  Ridge,  and 
North  Salem,  of  the  Presbytery  of  North  River,  and  also  the  congregation  of 
South  Salem,  of  the  same  Presbytery,  whenever  they  shall  apply  to  be  received 
under  the  care  of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford;  —  The  Rev.  Messrs.  Chester 
Long,  David  Remington,  George  Stebbins,  John  H.  Legget ;  and  the  congre- 
gations of  Mt.  Pleasant,  White  Plains,  Upper  Greenburg,  Lower  Greenburg, 
New  Rochelle,  West  Farms,  Peekskill,  and  Rye,  of  the  Presbytery  of  New 
York;  — The  Rev.  Robert  B.  E.  McLeod  and  the  congregation  of  Red  Mills, 
of  the  second  Presbytery  of  New  York ;  —  and  the  Rev.  Jonathan  Dickinson 
of  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson. 

"  Resolved  that  the  Presbytery  hold  their  first  meeting  on  the  first  Tuesday 
of  November  next  at  3  o'clock  P.  M.  at  Bedford,  —  that  the  Rev.  Jacob  Green 
preach  the  sermon  at  the  opening  of  the  meeting,  and  preside  until  a  Modera- 
tor be  chosen,  or,  in  case  of  his  absence,  the  senior  minister  present  to  take 
his  place. 

"  Resolved  that  two  of  the  candidates,  viz.  Cyrus  B.  Bristol,  and  Richard 
Sterling  under  the  care  of  the  North  River  Presbytery  be  assigned  to  the  care 
of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford."  [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  vol. 
I,  PP-  3-5-] 


ROLL    OF    MINISTERS.  IO3 

The  jurisdiction  of  the  new  Presbytery,  therefore,  ex- 
tended over  all  the  Presbyterian  churches  within  certain 
geographical  boundaries,  which  include  all  that  portion  of 
the  original  field  of  the  Westchester  Presbytery  situated  in 
the  State  of  New  York.  It  was  formed  from  churches  and 
ministers  from  four  Presbyteries,  North  River,  New  York, 
New  York  Second,  and  Hudson. 

ROLL    OF    MINISTERS. 

Name.  Church.  Enrolled. 

1.  Jacob  Green,  P.,  Bedford,  Nov.  3,  1829,  *Oct.  25,  1851 

Ch.,  Sing  Sing  Prison. 

2.  Stephen  Saunders,  P.,      South  Salem,  "  "  tApr.  16,  1834 

3.  Richard  Wynkoop,  P.,     Yorktown,  "  "  t    "  " 

4.  Chester  Long,  S.  S.,         White  Plains,  "  "  tOct.  20,  1836 

5.  David  Remington,  S.  S.,  South  Greenburgh,  ''  "  *July  24,  1S34 

S.  S.,  Rye. 

6.  George  Stebbins,  S.  S.,    New  Rochelle,  "  "  tApr.  20,  1836 

7.  R.B.E.McLeod,S.S.&  P.,  South  East,  "  "  *Aug.  23,  1856 

8.  Epenetus  P.  Benedict,?.,  Patterson,  "  "  *Aug.  15,  1870 

9.  Charles  F.  Butler,  S.  S.,  Pound  Ridge,  "  "  tApr.  18,  1838 

10.  Thomas  Picton,  "  " 

11.  John  H.  Leggett,  P.,        Peekskill,  "  "      tNov.  30, 1S29 

12.  Jonathan  Dickerson,Ch.,  Sing  Sing  Prison,  "  "       tSept.  4,  1839 

13.  Griffith  H.  Griffith.  S.  S.,  {  ^Swn!  N'^^ '"^P"  '''  '^3°.  *  1S32 

14.  Nathaniel  Prime,  S.  S.,    Sing  Sing,  Oct.  21,  1830,  tOct.   4,  1836 

15.  Cyrus  B.  Bristol,  Ev.,       (Virginia),  Oct.  6,  1830,  tFeb.  15,  1832 

16.  James  V.Henry,S.S.&P.,  Sing  Sing,  Apr.  15,  1834,  tjan.  13,  1846 

17.  Rob'tG.Thompson.S.S.,  Pound  Ridge,  Oct.  7,  1834,  tFeb.    3,1846 

P.,  Yorktown. 

18.  Reuben  Frame,  P.,           South  Salem,  "             "       tOct.  30,  1850 

19.  Samuel  R.  Ely,  P.,            Red  Mills,  Dec.  4,  1S34,  tApr.  19,  1837 

20.  William  Patterson,  P.,     Pound  Ridge,  Feb.  10,  1836. 

21.  John  Mason,  P.,                 New  Rochelle,  Apr.  19,  i836,tjune  25,  1S38 

22.  Jas.  R.  Davenport,  P.,     Rye,  Oct.  13,  1836,  tOct.  17,  1838 

23.  Edward  Wright,  P.,        White  Plains,  "            "      tSept.  4,  1844 

24.  Alex'der  Leadbetter,  P.,  North  Salem,  Jan.  13,  1837,  tOct.  20,  1841 

S.  S.,  Somers, 

25.  Joseph  Nimmo,  P.,  Red  Mills,  June  28,  i837,tApr.  18,  1849 

S.  S.,  North  Salem. 
S.  S.,  Croton  Falls. 

26.  Robert  W.  Orr,  F.  M.,  Nov.  22,  1837, tApr.  19,  1842 

27.  Joseph  I.  Foot,  Apr.  17,  iS3S,tSept.  4,  1839 

28.  Edward  D.  Bryan,  P.,      Rye,  Oct.  9,  1838,   SDcc.    3,  i860 


*  Died.  t  Dismissed.         §  Transferred  to  Presbytery  of  Connecticut. 


104 


THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    BEDFORD. 


29. 


31' 
32. 
33' 
34. 

35- 
36. 

37- 
38- 
39' 
40. 
41. 
42. 

43' 
44. 

45- 

46. 

47- 
48. 
49. 
SO- 
51- 
52- 
S3- 
54- 
55- 
S6. 
57- 
58. 
59- 
60. 
61. 

62. 
63- 

64. 

65- 
66. 


Name. 
George  T.  Todd,  P., 
George  Walker,  .S.  S., 

S.  S., 
Joseph  Owen,  F.  M., 
Joshua  Butts,  P., 
Samuel  Kellogg,S.S.&P.. 
David  Teese,  P., 

S.  S., 
Samuel  Pettigrevv,  P., 
Elias  S.  Schenck,  S.  S., 

S.  S., 
Henry  G.  Livingston,  P., 
Jas.  B.  Hyndshavv,  P., 
Matthew  T.  Adam,  P., 
David  Inglis,  P., 
John  P.  Lundy,  P., 
Joseph  Forsyth,  S.  .S., 
Rutgers  Van  Brunt,  P., 
Giles  Manwaring,  Tea., 
David  Irving,  S.  S., 

S.  S., 
James  B.  Ramsey, 
James  G.  Moore, 
Aaron  L.  Lindsley,  P., 
David  C.  Lyon,  P., 
Thos.  Scott  Bradner,  P., 
Andrew  Shiland,  P., 
Jesse  L.  Howell,  P., 
Sam'l  D.  Westervelt,  P., 
Benjamin  Van  Keuren, 
Winthrop  Bailey,  P., 
Henry  Benedict,  P., 
Joseph  C.  Foster,  P., 
Sam'l  W.  Crittenden,  P., 
John  White,  S.  S.  &  P., 
Peter  B.  Heroy,  P., 
Henry  W.  Smaller,  P., 

S.  S., 
Wm.  B.  Stewart,  Tea., 
Augustus  H.Seeley,S..S., 

S.  S., 
Geo.  F.  Goodhue,  P.  E., 
R.  H.  Richardson,  P., 
William  MeikJe,  P., 


Church. 
Gilead, 
Greenburgh, 
South  Greenburgh. 
(India), 
Red  Mills, 
South  Greenburgh, 
Sing  Sing, 
White  Plains. 
Red  Mills, 
Greenburgh, 
White  Plains. 
Gilead, 
Red  Mills, 
Yorktown, 
Bedford, 
Sing  Sing, 
White  Plains, 
Gilead, 

(Carmel,  N.  ¥.), 
Croton  Falls, 
North  Salem. 


South  Salem, 

Bedford, 

Croton  Falls, 

Mt.  Kisco, 

South  Greenburgh, 

Yorktown, 

South  East  Center, 
Port  Chester, 
Red  Mills, 
Gilead, 
North  Salem, 
Bedford, 
Gilead, 
Croton  Falls. 

North  Salem, 
Croton  Falls, 
South  East, 
Red  Mills, 
South  Greenburgh, 


Enrolled. 
Oct.  II,  i838,tFeb.  11,  1845 
Oct.  15,  i839,l|Oct.     6,  1841 

Oct.  2,  1S39,  IFApr.  20,  1842 
June  8,  1841,  tApr.  21,  1846 
Oct.  6,  1841,  tOct.  3,  1854 
May  4,  1842. 

Nov.  17, 1842,1  Apr.  16,  1845 
Apr.  16,  1845, tApr.  22,  1S57 

Aug.  20,  i84S,tOct.  17,  1849 
"  tApr.  18,  1854 
Nov.  10,  i847,tjune  7,  1853 
Oct.  17,  1848,  tjune  22,  1852 
Feb.  13,  i849,tApr.  16,  1850 
Oct.  2,  1850,  JApr.  21,  1858 
Oct.  30,  i85o,tApr.  20,  1852 
Oct.  7,  1851,  *  1852 

"       tOct.     3,1855 

Apr.  21,  i852,tMar.  15,  1854 
Oct.  19,  1852,  tJune  14,  1S54 
Nov.  ID,  1S52. 

"     tOct.    6,  1857 
Apr.  19,  1853. 

June  7,  1853,  tMay  15,  i860 

Oct.  4,  1853. 

Oct.  19,  1853,  tOct.    2,  1855 

June  14,  i854,§Dec.   3,  i860 

Oct.  3,  1854,    §    " 

Jan.  2,  1855,    *July  23,  i860 

Apr.  29,  i856,tOct.    7,  1857 

Nov.  5,  1856,  tOct.    X,  1861 

Oct.  20,  1857. 

Apr.  21,  1858. 


May  26,  1858,  tOct. 
Apr.  20,  1859. 

Oct.  4,  1859,   §Dec. 
Apr.  17,  1760. 
Oct.  31,  i860. 


2,  1861 


i860 


*Died.     tDismissed.     |Name   dropped.      §Transferred   to    Presbytery    of 
Connecticut.     || Deposed.     1[Transfcrred  to  Presbytery  at  Allahabad. 


ROLL    OF    CHURCHES.  IO5 


ROLL    OF    CIIUKCHi:S. 

Name.                      Enrolled.            Pastors  and  Stated  Suiiplles.  Term  of  Service. 

1.  Bedford,           Nov.    3,  1S29,  Jacob  Green,  P.,  j            L-j^  -'    jg"j. 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  Jan.-Apr.,  1S48 

David  Inglis,  S.  S.,  Apr.-Oct.  26,  1848 

u           u        p  \         <^ct.  26,  1848- 

'  I          June  22,  1852 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  July-Sept.,  1852 

David  C.  Lyon,  S.  S.,  Sept.-Dec.  i,  1S52 

«      1,  I          Dec.  I,  1852- 

I  May  17,  1S57 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  May-Sept.,  1857 

Peter  P.  Heroy,  P.,  J          ^^^  -^^6,  1878 

1-     .                       ,.               <       ...  1       1  ,»r      1            ,.  i         Tune  14,  1827- 

2.  vorktown,           "              '■      Kicliard  Wynkoop,  P.,  j          Aor   16   \Z\i 

I.   1      .  /--    'PI                  1.  ^         Mav  18,  1836- 

Robert  d.  Fhonipson,  P.,  <             p^i^        jj<  g 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  Mar.-Oct.-Dec.,  '46 

"                      "  Jan.  and  Mar.,  1847 

Matthew  T.  Adam,  S.  S.,  1847 


P 


J        Nov.  10,  1847- 
)  Apr.  20,  1S52 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  May-Sept.,  1852 

Samuel  D.  Westervelt,  P.,  {         ''^^Vm.I^S 

3.  Patterson,  "  "      Epcnetus  P.  Benedict,  P.,    ]  \     "^iq   ififi^ 

4.  South  East,         "  "      Robert  B.E.  McLcod,  S.S.,  Apr.,  '29-Dec.  S,  '30 

.,        p  )          Dec.  8,  1830- 

^  -  )          Aug.  23,  1856 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  May,  1848 

Matthew  'P.  Adam,  S.  S.,  Sept.,  i856-Apr.,'59 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  Apr.,  1859 

Geors/e  F.  Goodhue,  P.E.,  \  if  ~  q   ,rf/7 

*  (  Nov.  8,  1865 

5.  Pound  Ridge,     "  "      Henry  Dean,  S.  S.,  Apr.,  1829- Apr., '30 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  Apr.,  '30-Sept.,  '33 
Charles  F.  Pnitler,  S.  S.,  1831 

John  White,  S.  S.,  1832 

Robert  G  Thompson.S.S.,         Oct.,  1833-1835 
Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  July  and  Sept.,  1835 
William  Patterson,  S.  S.,  July,  '35-Feb.  10,  36 
P.,         Feb.!o,'36-Feb.^'89 


♦Supplies  appointed. 
14 


io6 


THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  BEDFORD. 


Name.  Enrolled.  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies. 

6.  North  Salem,  Nov.  3,  1829  Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 
Amos  W.  Seeley,  S.  S., 

Alexander  Leadbetter,  P., 

Sui)plied  Ijy  Presbytery,* 

David  Irving,  S.  S., 
Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 
John  White,  S.  S., 

"       P., 


7.  Mt.  Pleasant,      " 
Sing  Sing, 


8.   White  Plains,     " 


9.   Greenbiirgh, 
U. 


10.  L. 

S. 


Sui^plicd  by  Presbytery,* 
Augustus  H.  Seeley, 
Nathaniel  S.  Prime,  S.  S  , 
James  V.  Henry,  S.  S., 

P., 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 
David  Teese,  P., 
Edmund  C.  l)ittinger,S.S., 
John  P.  Lundy,  P., 
Chester  Long,  S.  S., 
Edward  Wright,  S.  S., 

P., 
Elias  S.  Schenck,  S.  S., 
Broman  B.  Beardsley,S.S. 
Joseph  Forsyth,  S.  S., 
David  Teese,  S.  S., 
Sui)plied  by  Presbytery,* 
Hosea  Ball,  S.  S., 
George  Walker,  S.  S., 
Elias  S.  Schenck,  S.  S., 
Suiiplied  by  Presbytery,* 
Mark  Mead,  S.  S., 
Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 
Hosea  Ball,  S.  S., 
George  Walker,  S.  S., 
Samuel  Kellogg,  S.  S., 

"  "  P., 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 
L.  P.  Ledonx,  S.  S., 
Jesse  L.  Howell,  S.  S., 

"         P., 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,* 
William  Meikle,  S.  S., 

P., 


Term  of  Service. 

Nov.,  iS29-Mar., '34 

Apr.,  1S35. 

\         Jan.  13,  1837- 

l  Apr.  22,  1840 

Apr.,  '40-Aug.,  '43 

May,  ■'48-Mar.,   '49 

1850-Oct.,  1855 

Oct.,  '55-Jan.,  1856 

Apr.,  '56-Nov.  5,  '56 

t  Nov.  5,  [856- 

)  Apr.  22,  1857 

May-Sept.,  1857 

1857-1863 

1S29-1832 

Nov.,'32-June  i6,'35 

(        June  16,  1835- 

I  Oct.  6,  1841 

Oct.,  '41-Jan.,  1S42 

May  4,  '42-July  6,'47 

1848 

P'eb.  i3,'49-Mar.,'5i 

Oct.,  1825-1833 

i83S-Oct.  13,  1836 

Oct.i3,'36-Sep.4,'44 

June,  1844-Apr.,  '49 

,Apr,,  1849-July,  '50 

July,  1850-July,  'S3 

Julyi7,'S3-July7,'64 

1832-1833 

1834-1S38 

1 838- 1 84 1 

June  I,  '43-Apr.,  '48 

Aug.,  1832-Oct.,  '32 

1832-1833 

July,  1833-Aug.,  '33 

Oct.,  1834-1838 

1838-1841 

Oct.,  '41-Apr.  29,'45 

(        Apr.  29,  1845- 

j  Ajir.  16,  1851 

Apr.,  i85i-Scpt.,'5i 

1851 

Oct.,  '52-June  7,  'S3 

j  June  7,  I8S3- 

j  Apr.  18,  i860 

Apr.,  1860-Aug., '60 

Aug.,  '60-Nov.  I, '60 

Nov.  I,  1S60- 

Apr.  17,  1S67 


*Supi)lies  ai)pointcd. 


ROLL    OF    CHURCHES.  IO7 

Name.  Enrolled.  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies.  Term  of  Service. 

11.  N'wRochclle,  Nov.  3,  1829,  George  Stebbins,  S.  S.,  1829-1S35 

John  Mason,  S.  S.,  1835-June  8,  1836 

,,  (  June  S,  1S36- 

)  Oct.  19,  1S37 

Gorham  I).  Abbott,  S.  S.,  1837-1841 

12.  West  Farnis,      "  "     Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  Apr.,  1830-July,  '23 

Ti     1    1  Ml  «  «      T  1      tr   T  ^.^   Ti  \        Dec.  14,  1826- 

13.  Peckskill,  "  "     John  H.  Le£;gett,  P.,  i  rj  ..,^\  rC,^ 
J                      '                                     -"                      f>&      »       '              I           JNov.  30,  1029 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  Dec,  1829-Feb., '3r 

14.  Rye,  "  "     Wms.  H.Whittemore.S.S.,  May,  1829-Apr., '32 

David  Remington,  S.  S.,    Apr.,  '32-Jan.  24,'34 
Thomas  Payne,  S.  S.,  1834-1S36 

John  n.  Hunter,  S.  S.,  1836 

T  r>     T-.  *    n  <  Oct.   13,  1836- 

James  R.  Daveni>ort,  P.,      j  ^^^^  fg_  ^j^^j. 

Edward  D.  Bryan,  P.,         Oct.  9, '38-Jan.  i, '61 

15.  Red  Mills,  "  "      Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  June-July,  1S31. 

«  «  \  M^y,  July,  Sept., 

(    Nov.,  Dec,  1S32 
Jonathan  Huntington, S.S.,  -Apr.  11,  1833 

Su])plied  by  Presbytery,*  July,  Aug.,  1833 

Samuel  R.  Ely,  S.  S.,  1833-Dcc.  4,  1834 

"  "     P.,  Dec.  4,'34-Oct.  4,'36 

Joseph  Nimmo,  S.  S.,         Dec.,'36-Jiuie  28, '37 

<i  i<         p  j        June  2S,  1S37- 

*'  j  June  30,  1S40 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  July-Sept.,  1840 

Joshua  Butts,  P.,  j  Feb.  8,  1842 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  Mar.-Apr.,  1S42 

c  1  11  ».•  B  S       Nov.  17,  1S42- 

Samucl  Pett.grew,  P.,  j  ^j,,.  ^j^,  ,844 

Sujiplied  by  Presbytery,*         May-Sept.,  1844 

James  P..  Hyndshaw,  S.  S.,      1844-Oct.  8,  1845 

P.,      Oct.8, '4 S-Oct.  2, '50 

John  H.  Hunter,  S.  S.,        Nov.,  '50-Mar.  9,'si 

Giles  Manwarring,  S.  S.,       Jan.-Apr.  12,  1852 

Alfred  P.  Botsford,  S.  S.,  May  i,  '52-Dec.,  '53 

Joseph  C.  Foster,  8.  S.,  1854 

"  "       P.,  Jan.2,'55-Apr.2o,'59 

Sujiplicd  by  Presbytery,*  Apr.-Aug.,  1S59 

Rich'd  11.  Richards'n,S.S.,Jan., '60-Oct.  29, '61 

.,  p        (         Oct.  29,  1S61- 

*  •'      i  Oct.  7,  1S63 

16.  South  Salem,  .Api.  19,  18-51,  Stephen  Saunders,  P.,  \  .  '■:   ,V-    .o-^" 

■  -^         ^  '  (  Apt.  10,   I034 


o       1          T-                n  \  Oct.  9.  18^4- 

Rcuben  Frame,  P.,  <  ,.   .     ;,„    ,0,^ 

'  j  Oct.  30,  1650 

A            I     T  •    1  I       r>  i  Nov.  10,  lS^2- 

Aaron  L.  Lindsley,  P..  j  ^^^   ^^^  ^^^^ 


•Supplies  appointed. 


I08  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    BEDFORD. 

Name.  Enrolled.  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies.  Term  of  Service. 

17.  Someis,  Oct.     i,  1S33,  Henry  IScnedict,  S.  S.,  1833-1S36 

Croton  Falls,  Alex'der  Leadbetter,  S.  S.,  1835-1838 

Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  May-Aug.,  1S40 

Joseph  Nimmo,  S.  S.,  Oct.,  1840-1848 

Stip])lied  by  Presbytery,*  May,  1848-Mar.,  '49 
David  Irving,  S.  S.,  Sept.,   '49-July,  '51 

James  B.  Ramsey,  S.  S.,  July,  1851-Aug.,  '52 
James  G.  Moore,  S.  S.,        Aug.,  iS52-Apr.,  '53 

Thos.  Scott  Bradner,  P.,  -j  ^Ajr."2,'i'857 
Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  May-July,  1S57 

Hedges,  S.  S.,  1858 

Albert  Chamberlain,  S.  S.,  Apr.,  1859-Apr.,  '61 
Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  Apr. -Sept.,  1S61 
Ale.xander  B.  Bullion.S.S.,  1S61-1862 

James  Sinclair,  S.  S.,  Oct.,  '62-Dec.  27, '63 

iS.  Gilead,  June  16,  1835,  Supi)lied  by  Presliytery,*  July-Sept.,  1835 

George  T.  Todd,  S.  S.,  1837-Oct.  11,  1838 

«       p  ^         Oct.  II,  183S- 

(  Apr.  17,  1844 

Su])plicd  by  Presljytery,*  May-Sept,  1844 

TT  r-    T  ■   •       ^        r>       (        Aug.  20,  1S4!;- 

Henry  G.  Lmngston,  P.,     j  Oct.  17,  1849 

Rutgers  Van  Brunt,  P.,  {  '^y%^f°'^^^,l'^, 
Henry  G.  Livingston, S.S.,  1852-1856 

Samuel  W.  Crittenden,  P.,  j        '^^Oc'J^'/ifc 

HenryW.Smuller,P.,         {  ^;JX^^ 

19.  Mt.  Kisco,       June  15,  1852,  Andrew  Shiland,  S.  S.,  1853-June  14,  1854 

p  j        June  14,  1854- 

■'  \  Apr.  24,  1870 

20.  Portchester,    Aug.   9,  1852,  Henry  Benedict,  P.,  J  /  '    ^'    ^^5 

21.  S.  E.  Center,  June  14,  1S53,  Supplied  by  Presbytery,*  June-Oct.,  1S53 

\\T   ,1  T>   -i^      T)  i        June  28,  1854- 

W.nthrop  Badcy,  P.,  {        ■»  ^^^^    ^^^  ,^^, 

LICEN.SED. 
Name.  Date. 

1.  Cyrus  B.  Bristol,  April  22,  1830. 

2.  Samuel  I.  Prime,  '    October  2,  1S33. 

3.  Joseph  Owen,  September  4,  1839. 

4.  Samuel  S.  Hawley,  October  7,  1840. 

5.  Joseph  C.  Foster,  April  21,  1852. 

6.  Henry  F.  Lee,  May  25,  1858. 

7.  Oliver  S.  Dean,  April   16,  1862. 

8.  William  H.  Dean, 

9.  Roswell  D.  Smith,  October  8,  1862. 


*Supplies  appointed. 


THK    PRESBYTERY    OF    BEDFORD.  ICQ 

ORDAINED. 

Name.  Date. 

1.  Cyrus  B.  Bristol,  October  6,  1830. 

2.  Samuel  Rose  Ely,  December  4,  1834. 

3.  William  Patterson,  February  10,  1S36. 

4.  Edward  Wright,  October  13,  1S36. 

5.  Joseph  Owen,  October  2,  1839. 

6.  George  T.  Todd,  October  11,  1838. 

7.  Joshua  Butts,  June  8,  1841. 

8.  David  Tecse,  May  4,  1842. 

9.  Samuel  Pettigrew,  November  17,  1842. 

10.  John  P.  Lundy,  February  13,  1849. 

11.  Jesse  L.  Howell,  June  7,  1853. 

12.  Joseph  C.  Foster,  January  2,  1855. 

13.  Samuel  W.  Crittenden,  April  29,  1856. 

14.  John  White,  Noveml)cr  5,  1S56. 

The  Presbytery  of  Bedford  had  upon  its  rolls  at  its 
organization  twelve  ministers  and  fifteen  churches.  Only 
five  of  the  latter  had  pastors  —  Bedford,  South  Salem, 
Yorktown,  Patterson,  and  Peekskill.  During  the  thirty- 
three  years  that  it  existed,  there  were  added  to  the  roll  of 
ministers  fifty-four  names  —  fourteen  by  ordination,  the  re- 
maining" forty  being  received  from  other  ecclesiastical  bodies. 
Of  the  sixty-six  ministers  connected  with  the  Presbytery  six 
died  —  Griffith  H.  Griffith,  David  Remington,  Jacob  Green, 
Giles  Manwaring,  Robert  B.  E.  McLeod,  and  Joseph  C. 
Foster  —  forty  were  dismissed,  four  were  transferred  to  the 
Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  one  was  deposed  for  contumacy 
in  refusing  to  appear  to  answer  to  the  charge  of  drunken- 
ness, and  the  names  of  two  were  dropped. 

Of  the  fifteen  churches  transferred  to  the  new  Presbytery 
at  its  erection,  one,  North  Salem,  was  without  a  Presbyte- 
rian organization.  A  petition  was  presented  April  18,  1832, 
by  members  of  the  Congregational  Church  to  be  reorgan- 
ized as  a  Presbyterian  Church.  A  committee  was  appointed 
for  the  purpose.  They  met  at  North  Salem,  May  2d,  organ- 
ized a  church,  and  ordained  two  elders.  From  this  action  of 
Presbytery  Richard  Wynkoop  dissented.  South  Salem  was 
received  from  the  I'resbytery  of  North  River  April  19,  1831. 
Two  years  later,  April  16,  1833,  a  petition  was  received  from 


no  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    BEDFORD. 

the  Congregational  Church  in  Somers,  requesting  that  it  be 
reorganized  as  a  Presbyterian  Church.  Notwithstanding 
Mr.  Wynkoop's  protest,  tliis  was  done  May  2d,  and  the 
church  was  enrolled  October  ist. 

Religious  services  were  held  at  Port  Chester  (then  Saw 
Pit)  in  connection  with  the  Rye  Church  early  in  the  century. 
In  1830  a  church  building  was  erected.  April  17,  1850,  a 
petition  was  presented  to  the  Presbytery  by  "  members  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Rye  residing  in  the  village  of 
Port  Chester  "  for  the  organization  of  a  church.  This  was 
not  effected  until  August  9,  1852.  April  20th  of  the  same 
year  "certain  members  of  the  church  at  Bedford  "  requested 
to  be  organized  into  a  new  church  to  be  located  in  the  vil- 
lage of  Mt.  Kisco.  This  was  done  by  a  committee  June  15th 
following. 

The  Gilead  Church  in  March,  1834,  made  the  following 
declaration  : 

"  We,  the  members  of  the  Second  Presbyterian  Congregational  Church  in 
the  town  of  Carmel,  and  formerly  having  been  a  branch  of  the  Westchester 
Presbytery,  which  is  now  extinct,  do  declare  ourselves  to  be,  as  in  fact  we  are, 
an  independent  Congregational  Church.  Believing,  however,  that  great  bene- 
fits may  result  to  the  church  of  Christ  from  intimate  union  and  fellowship  with 
each  other  by  their  mutual  aid  and  council  hold  ourselves  willing  to  unite  with 
some  ecclesiastical  body  whenever,  in  the  providence  of  God,  an  opportunity 
shall  present  and  the  way  made  clear."  [Blake's  History  of  Putnam  County, 
N.  Y.] 

One  month  later,  April  5,  1834,  at  a  meeting  of  the 
Presbytery  held  at  Red  Mills,  a  delegation  from  that  church 
appeared  and  stated  that  "  by  a  unanimous  vote  of  both 
the  church  and  congregation  "  they  had  been  deputed  to  re- 
quest the  organization  of  a  Presbyterian  Church.  The  re- 
quest was  granted  and  a  committee  appointed.  This  reorgan- 
ization was  effected  and  the  church  was  enrolled  June  16, 
1835.  In  1837  the  present  church  edifice  was  erected  in  the 
village  of  Carmel. 

Toward  the  close  of  Mr.  McLeod's  pastorate,  great 
changes  had  taken  place  in  the  South  East  Congregation. 
Many  had  passed  away,  while  others  had  removed.  Most  of 
the  people  lived  south  of  the  church.     Mr.  McLeod's  health 


GAINS    AND    LOSSES.  Ill 

had  failed  and  services  were  held  irregularly.  The  church 
building  needed  repairs,  and  efforts  were  made  to  change  its 
location  to  a  more  southerly  site,  nearer  to  a  majority  of  the 
congregation.  Failing  in  this,  it  was  proposed  to  organize  a 
new  church  at  South  East  Center.  A  petition  signed  by 
twenty-six  persons  was  presented  to  the  Presbytery  of  Bed- 
ford April  20,  1853.  A  commission  with  power  was  ap- 
pointed. They  visited  the  church  at  South  East,  heard  all 
parties,  and  urged  upon  the  congregation  to  use  all  diligence 
to  come  to  an  agreement.  These  efforts  to  prevent  a  divi- 
sion of  the  church  at  South  East  failing,  the  committee, 
June  7,  1853,  recommended  that  a  church  be  organized  at 
the  Center.  Seven  days  later  (June  14,  1853)  this  was 
effected  by  Rev.  Messrs.  Patterson  and  Irving  and  Elder 
Thomas  R.  Lee.  Mr.  Irving  preached  from  the  text,  Phil, 
2:  14-15  —  "Do  all  things  without  murmurings  and  dis- 
putings,  that  ye  may  be  blameless,  etc." 

While  these  gains  in  churches  were  made  there  were  also 
losses.  October,  1832,  the  Peekskill  Church  for  some  rea- 
son not  given  applied  to  the  Synod  to  be  transferred  to  the 
Presbytery  of  New  York.  The  request  was  granted,  and 
April  17,  1833,  it  was  ordered  by  Presbytery  that  its  name 
be  dropped  from  the  roll.  Five  years  later,  October  17,  1838, 
it  was  transferred  to  the  Second  Presbytery  (O.  S.).  The 
church  at  West  Farms,  October  21,  1835,  requested  the  con- 
currence of  the  Presbytery  in  their  petition  to  the  Synod  for 
transfer  to  the  Second  Presbytery  (later  Fourth  Presbytery), 
Consent  to  the  change  was  given  and  the  transfer  was  then 
made,  l^oth  of  these  churches  remained  in  the  Old  School 
connection.  At  the  Division  of  1837-8  the  New  Rochelle 
Church  became  New  School,  Greenburgh  united  with  the 
Classis  of  New  York  without  regular  dismission  in  1849  or 
1850,  taking  with  them  $500  or  s6oo  bequeathed  for  the 
support  of  the  said  Presbyterian  Church.  The  Mt.  Pleasant 
Church  gave  notice,  October  3,  1849,  that  they  would  apply 
to  the  Synod  for  transfer  to  the  Second  Presbytery  of  New 
York.     Application  was  made  and  the  request  was  granted. 


112  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    BEDFORD. 

The  church  was  enrolled  by  that  Presbytery  April  i6,  1850. 
October  18,  i860,  four  churches,  South  East,  South  East 
Center,  Rye,  and  Port  Chester,  were  set  off  by  the  Synod  to 
strengthen  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  the  transfer  to 
take  effect  on  the  first  Monday  of  December  following.  By 
these  various  changes  the  Presbytery  was  reduced  in  num- 
bers. At  the  dissolution  in  1862,  there  were  only  twelve 
ministers  and  twelve  churches  remaining.  These  figures, 
as  compared  with  the  numbers  on  the  roll  at  the  erection  of 
the  Presbytery,  show  a  net  loss  of  three  ministers  and  four 
churches. 

The  subject  of  church  extension  seems  to  have  been 
brought  to  the  attention  of  the  Presbytery  by  a  letter  from 
the  executive  committee  of  the  Board  of  Domestic  Missions 
presented  at  the  meeting  held  at  Bedford  September  4, 
1839,  and  a  paper  from,  to  us,  an  unknown  source  at  the 
next  meeting,  October  2,  1839.  ^^  was  voted  to  appoint  a 
committee  to  visit  destitute  districts,  to  select  "preaching 
locations"  and  to  make  arrangements  for  supplying  the 
same.  This  early  Church  Extension  Committee  was  com- 
posed of  Rev.  Messrs.  Jacob  Green,  Reuben  Frame,  and 
Robert  G.  Thompson.  There  is  no  record  of  a  report  by 
that  committee. 

The  General  Assembly,  by  a  resolution  passed  at  its 
meeting  in  1842,  called  the  attention  of  Presbyteries  to  the 
work  of  church  extension  within  their  respective  bounds. 
This  resolution  was  referred,  October  5,  1842,  to  a  com- 
mittee consisting  of  Rev.  William  Patterson  and  Elder 
Aaron  Read,  with  direction  to  report  at  the  next  stated 
meeting.  The  committee  reported,  April  19,  1843,  that  it 
was  "inexpedient  to  attempt  to  organize  any  new  churches 
in  our  bounds  at  i)resent."  October  2,  1844,  the  subject  of 
church  extension  was  again  brought  to  the  attention  of  the 
Presbytery  by  a  communication  from  the  l^oard  of  Missions. 
Willingness  to  cooperate  was  expressed,  and  a  standing  com- 
mittee was  appointed  to  receive  communications  on  the  sub- 
ject. 


CHURCH    EXTENSION.  II3 

The  calls  for  organization  of  churches  at  Mt.  Kisco  and 
Portchester  seemed  to  wake  up  the  Presbytery  to  the  oppor- 
tunities for  work  within  their  own  bounds  in  the  new  vil- 
lages springing  up  along  the  lines  of  railroad.  December  i, 
1852,  Rev.  Messrs.  Edward  D.  Bryan,  Epenetus  P.  Benedict, 
David  Irving,  and  Aaron  L.  Lindsley,  and  Elders  William  P. 
Van  Rennselaer  and  William  L.  Smith,  were  appointed  a 
Committee  on  Church  Extension,  and  were  directed  to 
organize  a  church  in  the  new  village  of  Mount  Vernon,  if 
the  way  were  clear.  It  was  recommended  that  the  churches 
take  up  collections  for  this  work  before  the  next  stated 
meeting  of  Presbytery.  This  committee  does  not  seem  to 
have  accomplished  anything,  for,  April  20th  following.  Rev. 
Messrs.  Patterson  and  Irving  and  Elder  Thomas  Mead  were 
appointed  a  Committee  of  Missions,  with  power  to  appoint 
a  missionary  to  labor  in  Mount  Vernon,  Mamaroneck,  and 
other  villages  in  the  southern  part  of  Westchester. 

The  Presbytery  felt  themselves  seriously  crippled  in 
their  work  of  church  extension  by  the  indefiniteness  of  their 
boundaries,  especially  the  southern  ones.  At  the  next 
stated  meeting,  October  5,  1853,  it  was  ordered  that  the  fol- 
lowing overture  be  sent  to  the  Synod  of  New  York  : 

"  Whereas,  it  is  known  to  Presbytery  that  during  the  last  few  years,  a 
number  of  villages  have  sprung  up  within  the  ancient  boundaries  of  the  Pres- 
bytery of  Bedford,  which  ought  to  be  occupied  by  the  Presbyterian  Church. 
But  as  the  Synod  of  New  York  has  seen  fit  at  various  times  to  dismember  this 
Presbytery  and  place  a  portion  of  our  churches  under  the  ecclesiastical  con- 
trol of  the  Second  Presbytery  of  New  York,  thus  crijjpling  and  embarrassing 
us  very  much,  and  as  we  have  no  means  of  ascertaining  where  our  Committee 
on  Church  Extension  may  labor,  or  whether  they  can  secure  any  of  the  churches 
which  they  might  organize,  as  some  of  the  churches  have  been  encouraged 
heretofore  to  act  on  the  principle  of  elective  aftiiiity.     Therefore, 

"  Resolved,  That  the  Synod  of  New  York  be  earnestly  requested  to  ilcfine 
our  bounds."     [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  \'ol.  Ill,  p.  95.] 

Apparently  action  was  not  taken  by  the  Synod  until  the 
following  year,  when  a  committee  was  appointed  to  remodel 
the  Presbyteries.  It  was  to  consist  of  one  member  from 
each  Presbytery.  At  a  meeting  held  during  the  Sessions  of 
the  Synod,  October  17,  1854,  Rev.  William  Patterson  was 
'5 


I  14  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    HUDSON. 

chosen  to  represent  Bedford.  April  18  (1855)  following  the 
Presbytery  voted  unanimously  that  in  remodeling  the  Pres- 
byteries "a  strict  geographical  arrangement  should  be  made 
as  far  as  possible."  The  records  of  Presbytery  do  not  in- 
form us  what  changes,  if  any,  were  made.  October  3,  1855, 
Rev.  Messrs.  E.  D.  Bryan,  Henry  Benedict,  and  Elders  John 
Palmer  and  PZphraim  Sours,  were  appointed  a  "committee  to 
visit  Mamaroneck  and  to  take  such  steps  as  they  may  think 
proper  towards  the  permanent  occupation  of  that  field." 
Nothing  came  of  these  attempts,  and  no  reports  are  on 
record. 

May  27,  1858,  a  committee  consisting  of  Rev.  Messrs. 
Winthrop  Bailey,  E.  P.  Benedict,  and  Joseph  C.  Poster,  and 
Elder  Ira  Pinckney,  was  appointed  "  to  visit  Lake  Mahopac 
and  decide  on  the  expediency  of  erecting  a  chapel  at  that 
place  in  connection  with  the  Red  Mills  Church."  At  the 
next  meeting  the  committee  reported  progress,  and  was  con- 
tinued. The  project  is  not  heard  of  again.  April  iy,'i86i, 
a  petition  was  received  from  forty-six  persons  requesting 
the  organization  of  a  church  at  Brewster's  Station.  It  was 
finally  decided  to  refer  the  applicants  to  the  Presbytery  of 
Connecticut,  to  which  the  churches  of  South  East  and 
South  East  Center  had  been  transferred. 


CHAPTER   XII. 


The  Presbytery  of  Bedford  continued. 

THE  number  of  communicants  reported  by  the  Pres- 
bytery in  1830  was  759.  The  following  list  gives  the 
membership  of  individual  churches :  —  South  East,  95  ; 
Bedford,  145;  South  Salem,  164;  White  Plains,  25;  New 
Rochelle,  23  ;  Yorktown,  33  ;  Patterson,  92  ;  Mount  Pleasant, 
36;  West  Farms,  35  ;  and  Rye,  12.  The  reviving  influences 
of  the  Holy  Spirit  were  generally  felt  throughout  the  Pres 
bytery  in  the  years  1830-2,  1842-3,  and  1858-9.  A  work 
of  grace  at  Patterson  was  reported  in  April,  1830.  One- 
fourth  of  its  membership  had  been  added  during  the  pre- 
ceding year.  The  narrative  of  April,  1831,  alludes  to  the 
indications  of  the  presence  of  the  Spirit  in  two  or  three 
congregations.  A  season  of  refreshing  followed.  There 
were  large  accessions  to  the  churches.  South  East  re- 
ceived 87,  South  Salem  71,  Bedford  52,  Upper  Grecnburg 
more  than  30,  and  White  Plains  19.  Two  years  later,  per- 
haps an  e.xtension  of  the  same  work  of  grace,  Pound  Ridge 
and  Red  Mills  were  greatly  strengthened. 

April,  1 842,  revivals  were  reported  in  four  congregations, 
with  170  hopeful  conversions.  The  following  year  not  less 
encouraging  tidings  were  received.  Many  of  the  churches 
had  enjoyed  "a  jMecious  season  of  refreshing  from  the 
Lord,"  and  more  had  "  been  hopefully  converted  to  God 
than  during  the  same  period  for  many  years  past."  The 
narrative  of  April,  1854.  tells  of  "manifest  evidences  of 
God's  gracious  presence "  in  the  leading  of  souls  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  truth.  The  Presbytery  of  l^edford  in 
1858-9  shared  with  the  church  at  large  in  the  presence  of 


ii6 


THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    BEDFORD. 


the  Spirit.  Extra  services  for  preaching  and  prayer  in 
some  instances  were  continued  for  months.  Nearly  all  the 
churches  reported  additions,  "  as  many  as  20  or  30  to  each 
church."  The  following  table  represents  the  growth  of  the 
churches  : 


No.  of 

Ai 

)r)ED.              Tot.il 

Year. 

Churches. 

Examination. 

Certificate.    Ci>mniiinicants 

1830 

•5 

3' 

9 

759 

1831 

16 

23 

12 

853 

1832 

16 

23s 

12        1 

062  ■ 

1833 

IS 

44 

II 

roi 

1834 

16 

14 

26 

125 

1S3S 

No  report. 

1836 

16 

19 

9 

413 

1837 

16 

47 

34        ' 

295 

1838 

16 

61 

41 

306 

1839 

16 

69 

24        1 

386 

1840 

15 

22 

9 

017 

1841 

15 

12 

23 

112 

1842 

15 

78 

27 

205 

1843 

15 

197 

18 

308 

1S44 

15 

61 

37        > 

450 

1845 

15 

51 

19 

429 

1846 

15 

20 

27 

I7S 

1847 

15 

10 

21 

[300 

1848 

15 

40 

30 

26S 

1849 

15 

46 

30 

'362 

1S50 

14 

32 

20 

272 

1851 

13 

S3 

21        1 

283 

1852 

13 

34 

22 

25S 

1853 

15 

32 

24 

248 

1854 

16 

60 

31 

[306 

1855 

16 

38 

31 

288 

1856 

16 

31 

39 

'327 

1857 

16 

42 

29 

1340 

1858 

16 

84 

45 

•397 

1859 

16 

131 

44 

1520 

i860 

16 

34 

25 

1496 

1861 

12 

26 

16 

1171 

1862 

12 

18 

23 

1185 

Total,  1595  789 

The  narratives  bear  a  remarkable  resemblance  to  such 
reports  of  the  present  day.  Often  they  refer  to  worklliness 
and  ai)athy  of  church  members.     Occasionally  they  speak  of 


TEMPERANCE.  Il7 

revivals  and  deep  interest  in  spiritual  things.  The  sins 
particularly  mentioned  are  intemperance  and  Sabbath  dese- 
cration by  idleness  and  worldly  amusements.  Frequent 
reference  is  made  to  the  former.  It  is  spoken  of  in  the  first 
narrative  (April,  1830),  where  we  are  told  "that  the  deadly 
vice  of  intemperance  has  received  a  very  material  check  in 
its  work  of  destruction.  Temperance  societies,  upon  the 
principle  of  total  abstinence,  have  been  formed  in  most  of 
our  congregations.  Some  distilleries  have  ceased  the  manu- 
facture, and  several  merchants  have  discontinued  the  sale  of 
ardent  spirits,  and  people  begin  evidently  to  feel  that  it  is 
wrong  to  use  the  article,  except  as  a  medicine." 

The  narrative  of  April,  1833,  reports  large  accessions  to 
these  temperance  societies.  We  are  told  in  others  (April, 
1838),  that  the  cause  "continues  to  advance,"  "the  vice  of 
intemperance  is  manifestly  decreasing  "  (April,  1842),  "the 
subject  of  temperance  is  engaging  more  than  ordinary  atten- 
tion "  (October,  1853).  Then,  again,  it  is  stated  that  tem- 
perance work  "is  stationary"  (April,  1849),  and  that  "it 
has  retrograded"  (October,  1852).  October  6,  1852,  the 
following  resolution  was  adopted  : 

"Resolved,  that  as  a  Presbytery  we  cordially  synipatliize  with  the  friends 
of  temperance  in  this  land  in  their  efforts  to  do  away  with  the  evils  of  intem- 
perance, and  that  it  be  recommended  to  the  members  of  our  churches  to 
cooperate  with  the  friends  of  temperance  in  all  their  landable  measures  to  free 
our  land  from  the  curse  of  intemperance."  [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of 
Pedford,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  57.] 

April  18,  1854,  the  Prohibitory  Tjquor  Law  was  ap- 
pointed the  subject  for  public  discussion  for  the  next  stated 
meeting.  The  temperance  movement,  judging  from  the 
statements  in  the  narratives,  was  directed  against  the  use  of 
"ardent  [distilled]  spirits." 

As  soon  as  railroad  communication  with  New  York  Cit\' 
was  established,  the  business  of  supplying  that  city  with 
milk  began.  October  8,  185 1,  Elder  Aaron  Read,  of  the 
Bedford  Church,  overtured  the  Presbytery  on  the  lawfulness 
of  sending  milk  to  market  on  the  Sabbath.  The  following 
is  the  minute  adopted  : 


Il8  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    BEDFORD. 

"  That  we  consider  the  conduct  of  members  of  our  churches  in  sending 
milk  to  New  York  on  the  Sal^bath,  as  being  inconsistent  with  a  Christian  pro- 
fession. 

"  2.  That  the  officers  of  our  churches,  where  tliis  evil  exists,  be  advised 
to  proceed  in  its  suppression  with  tenderness,  prayer,  and  fidelity,  that  the 
peace  and  prosperity  of  our  churches  may  be  preserved."  [Records  of  the 
Presbytery  of  Bedford,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  24.] 

April  20,  1853,  a  letter  on  the  sanctification  of  the  Sab 
bath,  with  special  reference  to  the  milk  busines.s,  prepared 
by  the  Rev.  David  Irving,  afterwards  Secretary  of  the  l^oard 
of  Foreign  Missions,  was  ordered  printed  for  circulation 
among  the  churches.  April  18,  1855,  the  following  was 
adopted : 

"Whereas  Presbytery  has  on  two  occasions  affectionately  remonstrated 
with  certain  members  in  some  of  our  churches  (though  tve  fear  to  little  pur- 
pose) who  habitually  profane  the  Lord's  Day  by  carrying  their  milk,  or  allow- 
ing it  to  be  carried  to  the  railroad,  and  whereas  the  General  Assembly  has 
decided  (which  decision  is  binding  on  all  officers  and  members  of  our  church) 
that  all  attention  to  worldly  concerns  on  the  Lord's  Day,  further  than  the 
works  of  necessity  and  mercy  demand,  is  inconsistent  with  the  letter  and  spirit 
of  the  Fourth  Commandment,  with  Christian  character,  and  is  a  bar  to  com- 
munion, therefore 

"  Resolved,  That  all  our  Sessions,  where  this  sin  exists,  be  enjoined  faith- 
fully to  admonish  and  instruct  all  who  persist  in  the  practice."  [Records  of 
Presbytery  of  Bedford,  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  147-8.] 

The  narrative  of  the  autumn  following  contains  the 
statement  that  "  Sabbath  desecration  as  respects  the  milk 
business  is  declining,  and  we  hope  that  it  will  cease  alto- 
gether in  the  churches."  The  narrative  of  October,  1857, 
asserts  that  "it  is  very  evident  that  where  the  milk  business 
is  most  pursued  that  the  Sabbath  is  kept  least  sacredly." 

A  [)lan  for  reviving  the  churches  and  prosecuting  more 
rigorously  the  work  of  the  Lord  was  ado}3ted  in  April,  1831, 
and  carried  into  operation  for  about  four  years.  The  field 
of  the  Presbytery  was  divided  into  districts  of  not  less  than 
three  nor  more  than  five  churches.  Union  meetings  in  each 
district  were  to  be  held  on  the  first  Wednesday  of  every 
month.  It  was  made  the  duty  of  each  minister  and  one  or 
more  elders  in  each  church  to  be  present,  and  the  congrega- 
tions were  invited.  A  sermon  was  to  be  preached  in  the 
afternoon,  religious  services  were  to  be  held  in  the  evening, 


SUNDAY-SCHOOLS.  IIQ 

and,  if  it  was  deemed  best,  the  meetings  were  to  be  con- 
tinued the  next  day. 

With  the  same  end  in  view,  a  scheme  of  Presbyterial 
visitation  of  the  chuixhes  was  adopted  October,  1853.  The 
committees  were  to  consist  of  two  ministers  and  one  elder, 
were  to  hold  preaching  services  and  perform  such  other 
duties  as  the  circumstances  warranted.  One  year  later,  the 
Presbytery  was  divided  into  districts  of  two  churches,  and 
committees  of  two  ministers  were  appointed  to  labor  at  least 
one  week  in  each  church  under  the  direction  of  the  pastor 
and  the  Session,  provided  that  they  consider  that  such  pro- 
tracted services  are  called  for.  At  the  Fall  stated  meeting 
of  1857,  "in  view  of  the  wants  of  the  church  and  the 
absence  of  a  spirit  of  reviving,"  a  visitation  was  again 
ordered.  Members  of  Presbytery  were  appointed  to  visit, 
"two  and  two,"  each  church  and  hold  such  services  as  may 
be  deemed  expedient. 

Sabbath-schools  were  maintained  at  the  first  in  nearly 
all  of  the  churches  during  the  summer,  but  on  account  of 
the  sparseness  of  the  population,  they  were  omitted  during 
the  winter.  An  improvement  in  this  respect  is  mentioned 
in  the  narrative  of  April,  1836,  the  sessions  being  held  in 
most  of  our  churches  throughout  the  entire  \ear.  We  have 
no  Sabbath-school  statistics  until  the  year  1856.  The  fol- 
lowing table  gives  the  membership  from  1 856-1862  : 


V'ear. 

Membership. 

Year. 

Membership. 

1856 

875 

1S60 

954 

1857 

741 

1861 

658 

1858 

771 

1862 

660 

1859 

945 

Prior  to  the  division  of  1837-8  tlie  benevolent  work  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church  was  carried  on  through  the  agency 
of  certain  voluntary  societies,  such  as  the  American  Home 
Missionary  Society,  the  United  Foreign  Missionary  Society, 
the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Mis- 
sions, the  American  Fducation  Society,  the  Presbyterian 
Education   Society,   and    through   certain    committees    and 


I20  THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  BEDFORD. 

boards  appointed  by  and  under  the  authority  of  the  General 
Assembly.  The  Standing  Committee  on  Missions  (1802) 
became  in  18 16  the  Board  of  Missions.  The  Board  of 
Education  had  been  established  in  18 19.  When  the  Pres- 
bytery of  Bedford  was  erected,  there  were  two  recognized 
agencies  under  the  exclusive  control  of  the  General  Assembly. 

Bible,  Missionary,  and  Tract  Societies  were  reported  as 
early  as  1830  in  nearly  all  our  churches.  The  standing 
rules,  adopted  April,  1830,  required  that  collections  should 
be  taken  up  for  missionary,  education,  and  commissioners' 
funds  of  the  General  Assembly.  The  amounts  were  to  be 
reported  and  the  money  paid  to  the  treasurer  of  Presbytery 
at  the  spring  meeting.  To  these  a  collection  for  the  Assem- 
bly's contingent  fund  seems  to  have  been  shortly  after 
added.  October  21,  1830,  the  Presbytery  voted  to  consti- 
tute themselves  a  missionary  society  auxiliary  to  the  board 
of  missions.  Rules  were  adopted  and  the  election  of  the 
necessary  officers  provided  for.  An  effort  was  to  be  made 
to  secure  fifty  cents  from  each  church  member.  April  20, 
183 1,  the  Presbytery  also  became  auxiliary  to  the  Board  of 
Education  of  the  Synod  of  New  York,  with  the  right  to 
choose  their  own  beneficiaries  and  appropriate  their  own 
funds.  The  balance,  if  any  existed,  should  go  into  the 
treasury  of  the  parent  society.  Collections  were  taken  up 
in  some  of  the  churches  and  reported  at  the  spring  meet- 
ings. 

The  Synod  of  Pittsburg  in  1831  constituted  itself  "The 
Western  P'oreign  Missionary  Society  of  the  United  States." 
Oct.  2,  1833,  the  plan  of  the  society  was  approved  by  the 
Presbytery,  and  its  work  commended  to  the  churches.  A 
collection  is  reported  April,  1835,  for  the  Theological  Semi- 
nary. On  the  recommendation  of  the  Western  Foreign 
Missionary  Society,  the  Presbytery,  Oct.  5,  1836,  determined 
to  undertake  the  support  of  a  missionary.  Mr.  Robert  W. 
Orr,  a  licentiate  of  the  Presbytery  of  Allegheny,  was 
assigned  to  this  Presbytery.  He  was  received  Nov.  21, 
1837,  and  on  the  following  day  was  ordained.     Steps  were 


BENEFICENCE.  121 

taken  to  raise  the  necessary  funds,  with  the  followinj,^  re- 
sults : 


Chuixlius. 

1S3S. 

1839. 

1840. 

.84.. 

I. 

Bedford, 

$167.05 

;?i44.i8 

$171.70 

$165.11 

2. 

South  Salem, 

11S.53 

159.00 

194.00 

1S4.99 

3- 

Pound  Ridge, 

41.19 

40.00 

46.00 

51-25 

4- 

Mt.  I'leasant, 

88.23 

155.26 

123.00 

58.81 

5- 

South  East, 

36.00 

20.00 

6. 

Greeiiburgli, 

25.00 

7- 

South  Greenbui 

igh,  22.62 

8. 

Yorktown, 

43- '5 

34.00 

41.50 

5.00 

9- 

I'atterson, 

5.00 

18.67 

10. 

White  I'laiiis, 

3-75 

8.61 

7-77 

II. 

Red  Mills, 

26.60 

350 

12. 

Soniers, 

3.00 

'3- 

New  Rochellc, 

20.00 

5.00 

5.00 

14. 

Rye, 

44-97 

141.00 

106.12 

Per 

Rev.  J.  Dickerson,    150.00 

Leg 

;acy, 

400.00 

Total,  $1,100.52  $655.62  $753.00  $576.28 

Mr.  Orr  was  dismissed  to  the  Presbytery  of  Clarion, 
April  19,  1842.  There  is  no  evidence  that  any  one  was 
appointed  in  his  stead.  No  collections  are  reported  for  the 
support  of  a  missionary  after  1841. 

In  1837  the  Western  Foreign  Missionary  Society  was 
adopted  by  the  General  Assembly  and  became  the  Board  of 
Foreign  Missions.  October  7,  1846,  the  Seamen's  Friend 
Society  was  commended  by  the  Presbytery  to  the  churches. 
October  3,  1849,  ^^^^  General  Assembly's  plan  for  raising  a 
fund  for  superannuated  ministers  and  their  families  was  com- 
mended to  the  churches.  AjDril  17,  1850,  annual  contribu- 
tions were  recommended  for  this  purpose.  In  1853,  the 
minutes  of  the  General  Assembly  contained  an  appeal 
in  behalf  of  the  Waldenses.  It  was  voted  to  present  that 
cause  to  the  churches,  and,  if  the  way  be  clear,  to  take  up 
collections. 

As  early  as  1835  a  plan  was  adopted  in  the  direction 
of  systematic  beneficence.  The  months  when  different  col- 
lections should  be  taken  up,  were  designated.  It  was  recom- 
mended that  associations  in  the  churches  should  be  formed 
16 


122  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    BEDFORD. 

and  committees  appointed  to  solicit  contributions.  The 
collections  mentioned  were  for  Foreign  Missions,  Educa- 
tion, Bible  cause.  Tract  cause,  Sabbath  schools.  Home 
Missions,  Theological  Seminary,  Commissioners'  and  Con- 
tingent Funds. 

The  expenses  of  the  commissioners  to  the  General 
Assembly  were  paid  out  of  the  Commissioners'  Fund  at  the 
rate  of  five  cents  a  mile.  The  balance,  if  any,  was  to 
be  paid  into  the  General  Assembly's  Fund.  This  action 
was  taken  April  20,  1836.  Later  the  collections  for  the  Com- 
missioners' and  Contingent  Funds  were  apparently  inade- 
quate to  the  purpose.  October  6,  1858,  the  following  assess- 
ment was  levied  :  South  Salem,  $20  ;  Bedford,  ^15  ;  Rye, 
$10;  Port  Chester,  $8;  White  Plains,  j^io;  South  Green- 
burgh,  ^10;  Patterson,  ;^8  ;  South  East,  $$  ;  South  East 
Center,  ^8  ;  North  Salem,  $3  ;  Pound  Ridge,  $5  ;  Mt.  Kisco, 
^3;  Yorktown,  ^5;  Gilead,  ^10;  Red  Mills,  ^5;  Croton 
Falls,  $5.  The  expenses  of  Presbytery  were  at  first  de- 
frayed by  collections  taken  up  at  the  meetings.  April  18, 
1854,  an  assessment  of  $2  was  levied  on  each  church  for 
the  expenses  of  Synod  and  Presbytery.  The  salary  of  the 
stated  clerks  was  fixed,  November  3,  1829,  at  $5  per  annum. 
October  3,  1854,  it  was  raised  to  ^10. 


STATISTICAL     REI'ORTS. 


12' 


CONTRIBUTIONS.' 


S 

1 

«  b 

w2 

c 

3 
0 

c 

•0 

c 

Year. 

Ct3 

0 

c 

.2 

.a  <3 

"g^ 

rt 

C 

■  --d 

Si 

.2  c 

m  3 

.at. 

E.2 

0  U) 

0 

3 

■3^ 

ii 

3 

3 

0 

r 

0 

^ 

Q 

U. 

w 

H 

H 

Qh 

«* 

U 

U 

1830, 

$390 

.... 

$10 

$3 

.... 

$18 

183I, 

255 

200 

35 

1832, 

33^ 

III 

.... 

29 

87 

1833. 

260 

261 

34 

2 

1834. 

639 

.... 

.... 

284 

10 

23 

8 

•835. 

No 

report  publis 

hed. 

.... 

1836, 

781 

1  . . . . 

252 

46 

'3 

1837, 

848 

.... 

5' 5 

2 

45 

13 

i8>S, 

1,276 

$425 

$425 

470 
261 

4« 
50 

17 

1839. 

$- 

20 

15 

1840, 

392 

737 

202 

»5 

41 

17 

1841, 

36O:   772 

353 

139 

41 

16 

1842, 

390   545 

82 

134 

4(^ 

23 

1843. 

335   632 

105 

64 

$151 

35 

16 

1844, 

378 

717 

120 

62 

3" 

71 

16 

1845, 

604 

6S0 

85 

50 

44 

12 

1846, 

480 

717 

213 

333' '- 

167 

37 

II 

1S47, 

3^3 

566 

236 

.. 

727 

40 

12 

1S48, 

332   421 

99 

48 

19s 

49 

18 

1849. 

382   772 

III 



.. 

405 

46 

14 

1850, 

412   582 

40 



•• 

79 

390 

57 

II 

Totals, 

$4.7^ 

5o 

^^4.853 

$7,566 

$4,010 

$843 

$ 

>o 

$132 

$2,346 

$789 

$241 

Year. 

.•2 
0 

V   c 

E.2 
Q 

B 
.0 

C 

0 

c 
.2 

0 

3 
-a 
W 

1 
« 

3 
&( 

$61 

39 

17 

199 

148 

125 

141 

220 

308 

96 

197 

229 

B 
X 

.2'aj 

•Eo! 

■4-f 

"(3 

•c 

1 

a. 

1 

a 
bo 

1 

Miscellaneous. 

1851, 
.852, 

1853. 
1S54, 

1855. 
1856, 

1857, 
1858, 
1859, 
i860, 
1861, 
1862, 

$439 
530 
695 
667 

1,129 
760 
666 
800 
807 
776 

675 
718 

$8,662 

$574 

539 

920 

1,056 

1,142 

948 

1.039 
1,286 

1. 139 
985 

771 
678 

$87 

"5 
378 
204 
250 

416 

544 
230 
178 
'75 

$75 
64 

51 
252 

77 

79 

140 

141 

199 

94 
)  .... 

)!  .... 

$6,652 
6,541 
10,982 
10,934 
12,354 
13.298 
8,898 

8,594 

",933 
10,618 

9,034 

6,973 

$487 
720 

651 

519 

2,476 

559 

732 

1,070 

1,056 

1.341 
762 
8.7 

$80 
193 
83 
152 

70 

258[ 

$4( 

I2C 

Totals, 

$11,077 

$3,272 

$1,780 

$923 

Ji6c 

)  $1,172 

$ii6,8n 

$11,190 

Total  Benevolent  Contributions  including  Miscellaneous, 
Total  Congregational,  i85i-'62, 

Preshyterial,  Commissioners',  and  Contingent  Funds, 
Total  for  every  cause  so  far  as  reported, 

*Cents  for  convenience  are  omitted.         tCliurch   Kreclion. 
missioners'  and  Contingent   l-'unds  and  Relief. 


$61,623 
116,811 

2,202 


-       $180,636 
tincliuled  until   iS^i   Com 


124  THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  BEDFORD. 

Less  than  one  year  after  the  organization  of  the  Pres- 
bytery, the  trial  of  Rev.  Griffith  H,  Griffith  took  place.  It 
was  entered  upon  with  great  reluctance  ;  it  was  the  outcome 
of  the  division  in  the  Yorktown  Church,  which  had  taken 
place  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  century  before.  To  the  Pres- 
bytery, apparently,  the  old  difficulty  was  a  dead  issue,  in 
which  they  took  no  interest,  the  division  a  fact,  which  the 
judgment  of  no  ecclesiastical  court  could  change,  and  the 
whole  proceeding  unwise  and  unnecessary.  Mr.  Griffith, 
who  since  1828  had  ministered  to  the  Congregational  Church 
in  Yorktown,  became  a  member  of  the  Presbytery  at  the 
first  stated  meeting,  held  April,  1830,  by  regular  dismission 
from  the  Fairfield  East  Association. 

At  the  next  meeting,  October  following,  charges  were 
preferred  against  him  in  the  name  of  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church.  They  were  read  and  ordered  on  file.  From  this 
action  Mr.  Wynkoop  dissented.  Complaint  was  made  to 
the  Synod  of  New  York.  The  complaint  was  sustained  and 
the  Presbytery  ordered  to  enter  the  charges  upon  the  min- 
utes. At  an  adjourned  meeting  held  in  December  in 
obedience  to  the  direction  of  the  Synod,  the  charges  were 
read  and  entered  upon  the  minutes.  The  action  of  the 
Presbytery  of  October  21st  declining  to  issue  requests  for 
the  attendance  of  witnesses  not  under  their  direction  was 
at  the  same  meeting  reconsidered,  and  the  stated  clerk 
directed  to  issue  either  citations  or  requests  as  desired  by 
either  party. 

In  the  charges  it  was  alleged  that  the  Independent  or 
Congregational  Presbyterian  Church  was  a  schism  from  the 
First  Presbyterian  Church,  that  they  had  excommunicated 
members  in  good  standing  in  the  original  church  [this  had 
been  done  in  1806],  that  they  had  publisheil  "one  or  more 
pam]:)hlets  of  a  scandalous  nature,  implicating  the  motives 
and  vilifying  the  character  of  members"  of  that  church  and 
"  the  reverend  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson  .  .  .  for  which 
no  concession  and  of  wliich  no  recantation  "  had  been  made; 
that  Griffith  H.  Griffith  was  statedly  ministering  "to  the 


THE    TRIAL    OF    GRIFFITH    H.    GRIFFITH.  1 25 

said  slandering,  excommunicating,  schismatic  body;"  that 
he  was  thereby  upholding  a  schism  and  giving  the  sanction 
of  the  Presbytery  thereto  ;  that  his  action  was  a  virtual  im- 
peachment of  the  decisions  of  the  Presbytery  of  Hudson, 
and  a  ratification  of  groundless  charges  published  against 
them  was  "virtually  arraying  the  Bedford  Presbytery  in  its 
sanctions  against  the  Hudson  Presbytery  in  its  decisions," 
and  distressing  the  hearts  and  the  hands  of  the  original 
church. 

April  21,  1 83 1,  the  Presbytery  proceeded  to  the  trial  of 
the  case.  Richard  Wynkoop,  on  request  of  the  prosecuting 
committee  of  the  church,  was  appointed  their  counsel. 
Judge  Aaron  Read,  elder  of  the  Bedford  Church,  assisted  in 
the  defense.  Avigust  30,  1831,  after  much  evidence  had 
been  taken,  the  case  was  thrown  out  by  the  Presbytery  on 
the  ground  "that  the  prosecuting  party  is  not  a  person  or 
persons  in  the  sense  of  the  Constitution  (Book  of  Disci- 
pline, Chapter  V,  Section  5),  nor  even  a  body  responsible  to 
this  judicatory,  and,  therefore,  not  subject  to  the  censures 
of  this  Presbytery  (Book  of  Discipline,  V,  7).  The  vote 
stood :  Yeas,  Rev.  Messrs.  Remington,  Stebbins,  Saunders, 
Green  and  Prime,  and  Elders  Andrew  Mead  and  Richard 
Dean ;  Noes,  Rev.  Messrs.  Long  and  McLeod,  and  Elder 
Samuel  l^rewster.  Appeal  was  taken  to  the  Synod.  It  was 
sustained,  and  a  commission  was  appointed  to  visit  York- 
town.  The  commission  discharged  this  duty  in  November 
following. 

January  5,  1832,  the  trial  was  resumed.  The  taking  of 
the  evidence  was  completed  by  March  28th.  The  parties 
were  heard  and  final  judgment  rendered  at  the  April  stated 
meeting. 

A  committee  consisting  of  Rev.  Messrs.  Jacob  Green 
and  Chester  Long  and  Elder  Ezra  Young  was  appointed  to 
draft  a  minute.  The  committee  prefaced  their  recommenda- 
tions with  a  statement  of  the  facts  pnu'en  in  the  trial,  which 
agrees  with  what  has  already  been  stated  as  to  the  original 
character  of  the  church,  the  gradual  change  in  the  form  of 


126  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    BEDFORD. 

government,  and  the  connection  with  the  Presbyteries  of 
Dutchess  County  and  Hudson.  The  division  of  1806  is 
not,  however,  attributed  to  this  change,  but  to  difficulties, 
not  specified,  which  arose  at  that  time.  The  return  to  Pres- 
byterian ism,  in  the  judgment  of  the  committee,  was  due  to 
the  quarrel  and  the  recollection  "of  the  former  character 
and  standing  of  the  church."  The  slanders  were  uttered 
"in  the  heat  of  passion  and  disputation."  The  Congrega- 
tional Church  to  which  Mr.  Griffith  ministered  was 
"  descended  from  a  body  whose  claim  to  be  a  true  church  is 
not  disputed,"  It  had  existed  for  twenty-five  years,  had 
never  "by  any  judicial  ecclesiastical  act  been  exscinded 
from  the  body  of  the  faithful,"  and  was  without  the  juris- 
diction of  the  Presbytery.  In  view  of  these  facts,  as  they 
judged  them,  the  committee  recommended  the  adoption  of 
the  following"  resolutions  : 

"  Resolved,  i.  That  we  as  a  Presbytery  are  not  called  upon  to  adjudicate 
in  relation  to  the  said  allegations. 

"  Resolved,  2.  That  without  deciding  what  has,  and  what  has  not,  been 
proved  in  regard  to  the  said  allegations,  yet  upon  a  whole  view  of  the  case, 
we  cannot  find  that  the  Rev.  Griffith  H.  Griffith  is  chargeable  with  any  irregu- 
larity in  the  part  he  has  acted.     Therefore, 

"  Resolved,  3.  That  the  said  Rev.  Griffith  H.  Griffith  be,  and  he  hereby 
is,  acquitted  from  the  charges  preferred  against  him."  [Records  of  the  Pres- 
bytery of  Bedford,  Vol.  I,  pp.  291-2.] 

The  report  was  unanimously  adopted.  Appeal  was  taken 
from  this  decision.  Mr.  Griffith  died  shortly  after.  The 
Synod  decided  that  his  death  was  no  bar  to  the  prosecution. 
The  General  Assembly  of  1833,  in  reviewing  the  record  of 
the  Synod,  took  exception  to  this  decision,  and  the  trial 
came  to  an  end.  Two  years  later  the  record  of  the  Pres- 
bytery was  reviewed  by  the  Synod,  and  of  eight  exceptions 
taken,  four  relate  to  the  conduct  and  decisions  of  this  case. 

The  trial  from  the  preferring  of  the  charges  (October  3, 
1830),  to  the  decision  of  the  General  Assembly  (May  2^, 
1833)  covered  a  period  of  two  years  and  a  half.  The  charges 
occupy  five  pages  of  the  record,  the  evidence  one  hundred 
and  thirty-eight,  the  final  judgment  six,  and  the  appeal  and 
reasons  therefor   twenty-six.      The    minutes  of   the  entire 


TRIAL    OF    GRIFFITH    H.    GRIFFITH.  12/ 

case  cover  more  than  two  hundred  pages,  almost  half  of  the 
first  volume.  The  prosecution  was  undoubtedly  inspired  by 
Rev.  Richard  Wynkoop,  then  pastor  of  the  church,  who 
acted  also  as  their  counsel.  It  was  conducted  by  him  with 
great  ability,  and  the  papers  prepared  by  him  are  models  of 
sound  argument  and  clearness.  The  entire  evidence  as 
given  in  the  record  is  in  his  handwriting.  The  positions 
taken  by  the  prosecution  from  the  standpoint  of  law  are  cor- 
rect, and  the  decisions  of  the  Synod  were  all  in  their  favor. 
The  only  useful  result  of  the  trial  was  the  securing  and 
record  of  evidence,  which  throws  much  light  upon  the 
division  of  the  Yorktown  Church  and  the  history  of  Asso- 
ciated Presbyterianism  in  Westchester  County.  Doubtless 
the  Presbytery  viewed  the  matter  from  the  standpoint  "  of 
the  peace  of  the  church  and  the  prosperity  of  religion." 
The  trial  naturally  produced  great  excitement  in  Yorktown, 
and  waked  up  latent  animosities.  The  feeling  extended 
even  to  the  children  in  the  district  school,  and  divided  them 
into  two  parties.  It  may  be  fairly  questioned  whether  the 
bringing  to  light  and  record  of  historic  facts  compensated 
for  the  bitterness  and  alienations  intensified  among  the 
members  of  the  body  of  Christ. 


CHAPTER  XI I L 


The  Presbytery  of  Bedford  continued. 

\  T  the  time  of  the  organization  of  the  Presbytery,  cer- 
t\.  tain  questions  were  growing  in  importance,  upon 
which  the  church  was  soon  to  be  divided  into  two  parties. 
They  were  the  Plan  of  Union,  as  connected  with  it  the  right  of 
committeemen  to  sit  in  the  General  Assembly,  the  recep- 
tion of  ministers  and  licentiates  "  on  the  credit  of  their  con- 
stitutional testimonials,"  the  ordination  of  ministers  "  sine 
titulo,"  voluntary  societies  and  church  boards,  and  the  "  new 
theology."  The  General  Assembly  of  1830  adopted  a  rule 
requiring  that  ordained  ministers  and  licentiates  from  corre- 
sponding bodies  should  be  required  to  give  their  assent 
to  the  questions  proposed  respectively  to  licentiates,  when 
about  to  be  ordained,  and  candidates,  when  about  to  be 
licensed.  The  Presbytery,  at  their  next  stated  meeting 
(October  6,  1830),  adopted  the  resolution  of  the  Assembly  as  a 
standing  rule.  The  burning  question  of  the  General  As- 
sembly of  1 83 1  was  the  case  of  Albert  Barnes,  and  con- 
nected with  it  the  right  of  a  Presbytery  to  examine  a  minis- 
ter or  licentiate  coming  by  certificate  from  another  Pres- 
bytery. June  13th  following  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford  set- 
tled the  question  for  itself  by  adopting  the  following  stand- 
ing rule  : 

"Every  minister  or  licentiate  coming  to  this  Presbytery  by  certificate  from 
another  Presbytery,  or  other  ecclesiastical  body,  shall  submit  to  an  examination 
before  he  be  received,  if  any  two  members  of  Presbytery  require  it."  [Records 
of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedft)rd,  Vol.  I,  p.  88.] 

Later,  April  20,  1832,  a  pastoral  letter  to  the  churches 
was    adopted.     After   alluding   to    the   large  accessions   to 


THE    "Ni:W    THEOLOGY.  1 29 

some  of  the  churches  and  urging"  the  importance  of  the  in- 
struction of  the  baptized  children,  of  the  prayer  meeting, 
and  of  the  supi)ly  of  the  congregations  with  the  Confession 
of  Faith,  the  errors  of  the  new  theology  were  pointed  out  : 


"  5.  And  here  we  feel  that  we  should  fail  in  our  duty,  if  we  did  not  call 
the  attention  of  our  churches  particularly  to  the  special  necessity  there  is  at 
this  time  to  watch  against  the  intrusion  of  heresy  and  disorder  in  the  church. 
We  hear  the  sentiment  coming  from  every  quarter,  from  men,  both  ministers- 
and  elders,  venerable  for  age,  and  of  tried  soundness,  piety,  and  judgment, — 
that  the  present  is  a  very  fearful  crisis  in  the  Presbyterian  church.  Errors 
of  various  forms,  striking  at  the  very  fundamentals  of  religion,  are  fast  creep- 
ing in ;  and  these  errors  are  the  more  dangerous,  because  they  are  introduced 
under  the  plausible  and  imposing  disguise  of  zeal  for  the  church  and  for  the 
salvation  of  men's  souls.  The  doctrine  of  original  sin,  as  taught  in  our  Con- 
fession of  Faith  (Chapter  VI,  Sees.  2,  3,  and  4)  and  in  the  Larger  Catechism 
(Questions  22,  25,  26,  and  27) ;  the  doctrine  of  the  impotency  and  dci^endence 
of  the  sinner,  as  taught  in  the  Confession  (Chap.  VI,  Sec.  4,  and  Chap.  IX, 
Sees.  3  and  4)  and  in  the  Larger  Catechism  (Quest.  149) ;  the  doctrine  of  vica- 
rious atonement,  as  taught  in  the  Confession  (Chap.  VIII,  Sec.  5,  and  Chap. 
XI,  Sees.  3  and  4)  and  in  the  Catechism  (Quest.  44),;  the  doctrine  of  the  im- 
puted righteousness  of  Christ,  as  taught  in  the  Confession  of  Faith  (Chap.  XI, 
Sec.  i)  and  Larger  Catechism  (Quest.  70);  the  doctrine  of  the  necessity  of 
the  Holy  Spirit's  agency  in  regeneration  and  sanctification,  as  taught  in  the 
Confession  of  Faith  (Chap.  X,  Secs.^i  and  2)  and  Larger  Catechism  (Quest. 
67): — these  doctrines  are  denied,  either  expressly  or  impliedly,  by  many 
in  regular  standing  in  the  church.  And  the  denial  is  defended  by  philosophi- 
cal subtleties  and  appeals  to  jnan's  depraved  reason  and  i)assions  ;  —  and  all 
under  the  pretence  of  improvements  in  theology. 

"And  the  errors  thus  projjagated  in  place  of  and  in  opposition  to  the 
fundamental  doctrines  just  specified  are  accompanied  with  various  new  and  un- 
authorized devices  (technically  called  new  measures)  in  conducting  religious  wor- 
ship. The  effect  of  which  is,  not  to  advance  the  cause  of  true  religion,  as  is 
pretended,  but  to  move  on  the  passions  of  men  at  the  expense  of  their  under- 
standings ;  and  make  them  say  they  are  converts  and  have  submitted  their 
hearts  to  (lod,  when  they  evidently  have  no  distinct  apprehension  of  the  plan 
of  salvation  by  a  Redeemer. 

"  Now  against  these  errors  and  disorders  we  affectionately  and  solemnly 
caution  our  beloved  people.  And  we  would  say  to  them  :  '  Beloved,  believe  not 
every  spirit,  but  try  the  spirits,  whether  they  are  of  God '  ( i  Jno.,  4:1).  '  Hold 
fast  the  form  of  sound  words '  (2  Tim.,  1 :  13).  '  Contend  earnestly  for  the 
faith  which  was  once  delivered  unto  the  saints '  (Jude  3).  '  To  the  law  and  to 
the  testimony;  if  they  speak  not  according  to  this  word,  it  is  because  there  is 
no  light  in  them  '  (Is.  8:  20)."  [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  Vol.  I, 
PP-  -97-300-] 

17 


130  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    BEDFORD. 

The  Presbytery  on  the  same  day  passed  the  following 
resolution : 

"  Resolved,  That  this  Presbytery  do  most  solemnly  and  earnestly  remon- 
strate against  the  loose  and  unauthorized  practice  of  many  Presbyteries  in 
receiving  members  without  expressly  requiring  of  them  their  assent  to  the 
questions  as  directed  in  the  Confession  of  Faith.  See  Form  of  Govern- 
ment, Chap.  XVI,  Sec.  12."  [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  Vol.  I, 
p.  309.] 

The  right  of  committeemen  to  sit  and  vote  in  the  Gen- 
eral Assembly  had  been  called  in  question  as  early  as  1820. 
It  was  then  decided  that  he  had  the  same  rights  as  an  elder. 
A  similar  decision  was  made  in  1826  in  reference  to  a  dele- 
gate, who  was  not  even  a  committeeman.  A  protest  was 
entered  against  this  action  by  forty-two  members.  The  mat- 
ter came  up  again  in  the  Assembly  of  183 1,  with  similar  re- 
sult as  before.  Against  this  sixty-eight  commissioners  pro- 
tested. The  Presbytery  on  the  same  day  that  it  bore  testi- 
mony against  error  in  doctrine  and  looseness  in  practice  in 
receiving  members  (April  20,  1832)  felt  called  upon  to  enter 
its  protest  against  this  decision  : 

"  The  committee  on  the  minutes  of  the  General  Assembly  made  a  report, 
which  was  accepted,  and,  being  amended^ was  adopted  and  is  as  follows : 

"  The  committee  recommend  to  the  notice  of  the  Presbytery  a  resolution 
passed  by  the  General  Assembly  of  last  year,  on  Thursday,  May  19,  in  words 
following :  '  The  Assembly  proceeded  to  consider  the  case  of  the  person 
denominated  Standing  Committee  in  the  commission,  it  was  resolved,  that  the 
member  be  received  and  enrolled  among  the  list  of  members.' 

"  Against  the  above  resolution  your  committee  would  recommend  that 
Presbytery  enter  on  their  minutes  a  respectful  and  solenm  remonstrance  for 
the  following  reasons  : 

"  I.  It  is  an  ex]jress  violation  of  the  letter  of  the  constitution  as  stated  in 
their  commission,  either  (i)  by  calling  him  a  committeeman,  and  not  a  ruling 
elder;  or  (2)  by  calling  him  ruling  elder  contrary  to  the  fact. 

II.  It  violates  tiie  spirit  of  the  constitution  and  endangers  its  safety, 
(i)  He  is  not  supposed  to  cherish  the  principles  of  the  church,  for  which  he 
legislates  and  decides.  (2)  Nor  is  he  under  the  solemn  obligations  by  cove- 
nant, as  is  uniformly  required  of  our  elders.  (3)  Nor  is  he  capable  of  deciding, 
according  to  our  constitution,  questions  that  may  come  before  the  judicatory." 
[Kecords  of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  Vol.  I,  pp.  310-11.] 

Eighteen  months  later,  October  2,  1833,  there  were  rumors 
of  doctrinal  unsoimdness  in  some  of  the  churches  under  the 
care  of  the  Presbyteiy.     The  following  action  was  taken  : 


THE    "WESTERN    MEMORIAL."  I3I 

"  Whereas,  it  is  reported  that  disorders  prevail  and  that  erroneous  doc- 
trines are  preached  in  and  about  Ked  Mills;  therefore, 

"  Resolved,  That  Messrs.  Green,  Saunders,  and  Dickerson  be  a  comn-.ittee 
to  visit  that  conj^rcgation  and  other  parts  of  the  Presbyten,',  tt)  inquire  into  the 
truth  of  the  said  report,  and  that  they  report  to  the  Presbytery  at  the  ne.xt 
stated  meeting."     [Records  of  the  Pre.sbytery  of  Bedford,  Vol.  I,  pp.  376-7.] 

The  committee  reported  as  directed  (April  15,  1834),  and 
the  report  was  accepted  and  adopted  : 

"  A  majority  of  the  committee  visited  Red  Mills  and  Somers  and  made 
infjuiry  upon  this  subject.  At  Red  Mills  they  conversed  with  as  many  of  the 
ciders  as  they  could,  and  inquired  of  them  particularly  respecting  the  said 
rumors.  From  all  the  information  they  could  get  relative  to  the  subjects  of 
in()uiry,  they  are  unable  to  sjiecify  any  particular  errors  that  have  been  preached 
or  disorders  that  have  been  practiced  in  that  place,  or  in  any  other  place  within 
the  bounds  of  the  Presbytery.  And  the  committee  would  further  report  that 
in  the  congregation  of  Red  Mills  former  difficulties  and  divisions  appear  to  be 
healed,  and  they  are  now  in  a  state  of  harmony  and  prosperit}-,  enjoying  the 
labors  of  a  man  [Rev.  Jonathan  Huntington]  in  whom  they  arc  all  hajjpily 
united ;  and  there  arc  some  pleasing  indications  of  the  special  presence  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  to  revive  and  build  up  His  cause  among  them."  [Records  of  the 
Presbytery  of  Bedford,  Vol.  I,  pp.  332-3.] 

The  old  questions  were  brought  uj:)  again  in  the  General 
Assembly  of  1834  by  "a.  memorial  from  a  number  of  judica- 
tories, and  individual  ministers  and  ruling  elders,  in  different 
parts  of  the  church,  on  the  present  state  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church,"  known  to  history  as  the  "Western  Memorial,"  or 
"  Cincinnati  Memorial."  It  was  signed  by  eighteen  minis- 
ters and  ninety-nine  elders.  Exception  was  taken,  among 
other  things,  to  the  Plan  of  Union,  to  the  patronage  of 
voluntary  societies,  and  to  certain  errors  in  doctrine  taught 
in  the  church,  and  previous  General  Assemblies  were 
charged  with  evasion  and  failure  to  discharge  "  their  con- 
stitutional duties."  The  Assembly  was  asked  to  abrogate 
the  Plan  of  Union,  to  conduct  its  own  missionary  ojiera- 
tions,  and  bear  testimony  against  false  doctrine.  The 
prayers  of  the  memorialists  were  not  granted,  and  a  pro- 
test was  entered.  A  resolution  was  then  offered,  condemn- 
ing certain  doctrinal  errors,  and  rejected.  A  second  protest 
was  [presented,  but  refused  a  place  in  the  record.  The 
protestants  (thirty-seven  ministers  and  twenty-seven  elders) 
drew  uji  a  paper  designated  by  themselves  "The  Act  and 


132  THE    PRESBVTERY    OF    BEDFORD. 

Testimony,"  similar  in  sentiment  to  the  "Memorial,"  in 
which  they  called  upon  all  who  loved  the  church  to  give  no 
countenance  to  the  teachers  of  false  doctrine  and  upon  all 
Synods,  Presbyteries,  and  Sessions,  and  members  thereof, 
ministers  and  elders,  who  held  views  similar  to  those  ex- 
pressed in  the  paper,  to  signify  publicly  their  approval.  A 
convention  was  called  to  meet  in  Pittsburgh  in  May,  1835, 
previous  to  the  meeting  of  the  Assembly,  to  take  such 
action  as  seemed  "best  suited  to  restore  the  prostrated 
standards."  The  Presbytery  expressed  its  approval  (Octo- 
ber, 1834)  in  the  following  language  : 

"  A  paper  entitled  An  Act  and  Testimony,  etc.,  was  presented  to  the  Pres- 
bytery and  read  :  and,  on  motion,  the  said  Act  and  Testimony  was  unanimously 
adopted  as  the  Act  and  Testimony  of  this  Presbytery.  And  it  was  unani- 
mously 

"Resolved,  i.  That  in  the  judgment  of  this  Presbytery,  a  crisis  has 
arrived  in  the  affairs  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  through  the  prevalence  of 
various  errors  and  disorders,  in  which  the  purity,  peace  and  prosperity  of 
the  church  are  greatly  suffering,  the  comfort  and  edification  of  believers  much 
marred,  and  the  ingathering  of  souls  into  the  Redeemer's  kingdom  hindered. 

"2.     Such  being  the  state  of  things,  we  do  deliberately  think  that  every 
honest  and  enlightened   adherent  to  our  excellent  standards,  and   csjiecially 
every  minister  and  elder  is  called  upon  openly  to  avow  such  adherence:  and  . 
we  think  this  cannot  be  better  done  than  by  individually  signing  the  aforesaid 
Act  and  Testimony.     And,  therefore, 

"  3.  We  do  earnestly  recommend  it  to  every  minister  and  elder  of  the 
churches  com])osing  this  Presbytery,  that  they  take  this  matter  into  serious 
consideration ;  and  that  they  give  in  their  names  to  this  Act  and  Testimony, 
and  transmit  them,  as  soon  as  practicable,  to  the  Stated  Clerk  of  this  Pres- 
bytery, that  he  may  transmit  them  to  the  office  of  the  Presbyterian."  [Records 
of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  Vol.  I,  pp.  406-7.] 

At  the  next  stated  meeting,  April,  1835,  Jacob  Green  and 
Elder  John  Owen  of  the  Somers  Church  were  appointed 
delegates  to  the  Pittsburgh  convention  and  commissioners 
to  the  General  Assembly. 

The  majority  of  the  Assembly  of  1835  were  in  sympathy 
with  the  views  expressed  in  the  Act  and  Testimony,  and  the 
action  taken  was  in  accordance  therewith.  In  the  next 
General  Assembly  (1836)  the  other  party  were  in  power. 
Before  them  came  the  appeal  of  Albert  liarnes  from  the  decis- 
ion of  the  Synod  of  Philadelphia,  suspending  him  from  the  ex- 


GENERAL    ASSEMBLY    OF    1 836.  1 33 

ercise  of  the  functions  of  the  gospel  ministry,  and  the  agree- 
ment made  by  a  committee  appointed  by  the  previous  Assem- 
bly with  the  Synod  of  Pittsburgh  for  the  transfer  of  the  West- 
ern Foreign  Missionary  Society.  The  appeal  of  Albert  Barnes 
was  sustained  and  the  decision  of  the  Synod  reversed.  The 
agreement  with  the  Synod  of  Pittsburgh  was  not  ratified. 
The  Presbytery  was  unable  to  agree  with  the  Assembly,  and  its 
dissent  was  entered  upon  the  minutes  (November  29,  1836)  : 

"Whereas,  The  Presbyterian  Church  has  l)een  for  several  years  past,  and 
now  is,  greatly  afflicted,  her  purity,  beauty,  and  peace  much  marred,  and  her 
prosperity  hindered  by  the  prevalence  of  various  dangerous  and  destructive 
errors,  and  by  loose  and  corrupt  practices  in  the  administration  of  her  govern- 
ment ;  and,  whereas,  these  errors  seem  to  be  increasing  and  extending ;  and, 
whereas,  the"  majority  of  the  last  General  Assembly  did,  by  several  decisive 
votes,  refuse  to  adopt  measures  which  were  proposed,  for  the  correction  and 
prevention  of  these  evils,  and  for  the  general  purity  and  enlargement  of 
the  I'resbytcrian  Church,  and  did,  by  such  refusal,  give  their  sanction  and  en- 
couragement to  the  errors  and  disorders  in  cpiestion.  Therefore,  this  Presby- 
tery, feeling  alarmed  not  only  for  the  purity  and  ])eace,  but  also  for  the  safety 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  would,  and  now  do,  as  they  have  heretofore  done, 
bear  their  testimony  against  these  corruptions ;  and  for  this  purpose  they 
adopt  the  following  resolutions  : 

"Resolved,  i,  That  in  the  judgment  of  this  Presbytery,  a  certain  book, 
entitled  'Notes  on  the  Romans,'  by  Rev.  Albert  liarnes,  contains  dangerous  and 
fundamental  errors,  especially  in  regard  to  the  doctrines  of  original  sin,  the 
relation  of  man  to  Adam,  and  justification  by  faith  in  the  imputed  righteous- 
ness of  Christ,  and  that  said  book  is  calculated  to  deceive  the  young  and 
the  unwary  and  seduce  them  from  the  belief  and  practice  of  the  pure  doctrines 
of  the  Gosjiel,  as  contained  in  our  Confession  of  Faith  and  Catechisms. 

"  Resolved,  2,  That  in  the  judgment  of  this  Presbytery,  the  effect  of  the 
decision,  by  a  majority  of  the  last  General  Assembly,  of  several  important 
questions,  was  greatly  to  disparage  the  best  interests  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  — 

"(I.)  The  decision,  recorded  pp.  26S-269  of  their  printed  minutes,  in 
which  they  sustained  the  apj^eal  of  the  Rev.  Albert  Parnes  from  a  decision  of 
the  Synod  of  Philadelphia,  by  which  he  had  been  suspended  from  the  office  of 
the  ministry.  Because  by  this  decision  they  restored  him  to  the  ministry  and 
bid  him  God  speed  in  jireaching  and  publishing  the  very  dangerous  errors 
which,  it  was  proved,  he  maintained; 

"  (2.)  The  decision,  recorded  p.  270,  by  which  they  refused  to  adopt 
a  resolution  offered  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Miller,  specifying  and  condemning  various 
errors  and  representations  contained  in  the  said  '  Notes  on  the  Romans.'  Py 
this  decision  they  do  indirectly,  yet  very  plainly  give  their  sanction  to  these 
errors  and  representations,  and  manifest  a  willingness  to  give  them  currency. 
And  that  we  do  not  misjudge  in  this  is  evident  from  the  published  speeches  of 
many  in  advocating  that  decision  ; 


134  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    BEDFORD. 

"  (3.)  The  decision,  recorded  p.  27S,  by  which  they  refused  to  ratify  a 
contract  made  by  a  committee  of  the  previous  General  Assembly  with  the  Synod 
of  Pittsburgh,  relative  to  the  Western  Foreign  Missionary  Society.  By  this  de- 
cision they  greatly  disparaged  the  interests  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  :  First, 
Because  they  did  thereby  violate  the  faith  of  the  church,  which  had  been 
pledged  by  the  preceding  General  Assembly,  through  their  committee  expressly 
empowered  so  to  do,  which  pledge  was  also  accepted  in  good  faith  by  the 
other  contracting  party  ;  Secondly,  Because  they  did  by  this  decision,  acting  in 
their  high  and  official  character,  as  members  of  the  supreme  judicatory  of  the 
church,  declare  that  the  Presbyterian  Church,  as  such,  ought  not  to  engage  in 
the  great  work  of  evangelizing  the  nations  of  the  earth,  that  is  to  say,  that  she 
ought  not  to  obey  the  great  command  of  her  Lord,  to  preach  the  Gospel 
to  every  creature. 

"  Resolved,  3,  As  the  judgment  of  this  Presbytery,  that  all  irresponsi- 
ble associations  for  training  young  men  for  the  ministry  and  for  conducting 
missions,  whether  domestic  or  foreign,  are  unauthorized  and  dangerous  institu- 
tions, and  ought  not  to  receive  the  patronage  of  those  who  love  the  doctrines 
and  order  of  the  Presbyterian  Church;  because  such  associations,  from 
the  nature  of  their  organization,  can  give  no  security  for  the  maintenance  and 
propagation  of  said  doctrine  and  order;  but,  on  the  contrary,  do  seriously 
jeopard  both.  And  we  believe,  on  evidence  most  satisfactory,  that  such  asso- 
ciations, existing  and  operating  among  us,  have  already  been  the  instruments 
of  greatly  corrupting  and  distracting  the  Presbyterian  Church ;  so  even  now 
her  unity  is  threatened.  And  in  consistency  with  these  views,  we  judge  it  to  be 
the  duty  of  all  Presbyterians  to  sustain  and  liberally  to  patronize  the  General 
Assembly's  Boards  of  Education  and  of  Missions  and  the  Western  Foreign 
Missionary  Society;  because  these  institutions  originated  with  the  judicatories 
of  the  church,  are  under  their  immediate  supervision  and  control,  and  are  re- 
sponsible to  them  for  all  their  acts.  And  as  a  special  effort  is  at  this  time 
about  to  be  made  by  the  Western  Foreign  Missionary  Society,  we  do  most 
earnestly  recommend  it  to  the  liberal  patronage  of  our  churches. 

"  Resolved,  4,  That  we,  as  a  Presbytery,  do  hereby  recognize  our  obliga- 
tions to  abide  by  and  carry  out  the  principles  of  the  Act  and  Testimony  unani- 
mously adopted  by  us  in  October,  1834;  —  one  of  which  principles  is  that 
we  will  bear  testimony  against  the  errors  of  the  church,  until  testimony  will  be 
no  longer  heard.  And  this,  we  believe,  is  now  the  case.  And,  therefore,  inas- 
much as  the  errorists  who  have  crept  in  among  us  have  caused  a  division, 
in  fact,  and  inasmuch  as  separation  in  form  is  better  than  nominal  union  with 
contention  and  alienation  of  feeling,  and  inasmuch  as  such  separation  seems 
to  offer  the  only  way  of  preserving  and  propagating  a  pure  faith,  therefore 

"  Resolved,  5,  That  in  the  judgment  of  this  Presbytery  a  separation 
ought  to  take  i)lace  between  the  orthodox  and  the  errorists  now  composing  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  as  soon  as  the  same  can  be  judiciously  effected.  And, 
therefore,  we  recommend  that  convention  be  called  by  the  central  committee 
appointed  last  June  at  Pittsburgh,  to  take  this  matter  into  consideration,  to 
effect  the  [proposed  sejiaration  or  prepare  the  way  for  it,  or,  if  a  separation  be 
deemed  unadvisable,  then  to  consider  and  determine  what  ought  to  be  done. 

"  The  yeas  and  nays  on  the  foregoing  preamble  and  resolutions,  being 
called  for,  stood  as  follows : 


DIVISION    OF    1837-8.  135 

"Yeas  —  Messrs.  Green,  Dickerson,  Benedict,  Frame,  Thompson,  and 
Patterson,  ministers;  and  Smith  [Pound  Ridge],  Miller  [Bedford],  Northrop 
[South  Salem],  John  Wallace  [North  Salem],  and  Young  [South  East],  elders. 

"  Nay  —  Mr.  White  [Somcrs],  elder."  [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Bed- 
ford, Vol.  I,  pp.  509-516  ] 

The  question  of  separation  and  of  a  convention  had  been 
suggested  in  a  secret  circular  sent  to  those  who  were 
opposed  to  the  action  of  the  Assembly  of  1836. 

On  April  19,  1837,  Rev.  Reuben  Frame  and  Elder  John 
Owen  were  appointed  delegates  to  the  Philadelphia  Conven- 
tion and  commissioners  to  the  General  Assembly.  The  acts 
of  that  Assembly  (1837)  received  the  unanimous  approval  of 
the  Presbytery,  October  4,  1837. 

"  I.  This  Presbytery  would  record  their  feelings  of  gratitude  to  God  for 
His  merciful  interposition  in  giving  to  the  friends  of  truth  and  presbyterial 
order  so  deciilcd  a  majority  in  the  last  General  Assembly. 

"  2.  With  similar  feelings  of  gratitude  we  do  hereby  express  our  decided 
approbation  of  the  reformatory  measures  of  that  Assembly,  and  give  it  as  our 
unwavering  judgment  that  the  acts  of  that  Assembly  abrogating  the  Plan  of 
Union  and  disowning  the  Synods  of  the  Western  Reserve,  Utica,  Geneva,  and 
Genesee,  consequent  thereon ;  and  the  resolutions  discountenancing  the  opera- 
tions of  the  American  Home  Missionary  Society  and  the  American  Education 
Society  within  the  bounds  of  the  Presbyterian  Church;  and  the  order  ct)ncern- 
ing  the  organization  of  the  ne.\t  General  Assembly,  —  were  not  only  constitu- 
tional and  right,  but  necessary  for  the  preservation,  purity,  peace  and  prosperity 
of  our  beloved  church."  [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford, Vol.  II,  pp.  44-5.] 

The  Synod  took  exception  to  these  resolutions,  judging 
them  to  be  "unwise  and  not  for  edification." 

The  General  Assembly  of  1838  met  in  the  Seventh 
Presbyterian  Church  of  Philadelphia  on  May  iSth.  The 
majority  refused  to  enroll  the  commissioners  from  Presby- 
teries of  the  exscinded  Synods.  The  minority,  ignoring  the 
Moderator  of  the  last  Assembly  who  occupied  the  chair, 
called  u[i()n  U.-.  IJeman,  an  e.\-Moderator,  to  act  temporarily 
as  jjresiding  officer,  effected  an  organization  by  the  election 
of  Messrs.  Erskine  Mason  and  E.  W.  Gilbert  as  clerks,  and 
Dr.  S.  Fisher  as  Moderator,  and  immediately  adjourned  to 
the  First  Church.  Rev.  William  S.  Plumer  was  elected 
Moderator  by  those  who  remained.  The  Presbytery,  Octo- 
ber 3,  1838,  unanimously  ratified  the  action  of  the  latter 
body: 


136  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    BEDFORD. 

"  That  this  Presbytery  adhere  to  the  General  Assembly,  which  was 
organized  and  held  its  sessions  in  the  Seventh  Presbyterian  Church  in  Phila- 
delphia, and  of  which  the  Rev.  William  S.  Plumer  was  Moderator."  [Records 
of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  Vol.  II,  p.  162.] 

The  Synod  of  New  York  (O.  S.)  directed  that  the  Pres- 
byteries shall  see  to  it  that  no  ministers  be  regarded  as 
members  unless  they  shall  have  expressed  their  adherence 
to  the  General  Assembly,  which  held  its  sessions  in  the 
Seventh  Presbyterian  Church  in  Philadelphia.  The  Pres- 
bytery complied  with  this  order,  and  put  all  applicants  to 
this  test. 


CHAPTER   XIV. 


The  Presbytery  of  Bedford  contvined. 

THE  vote  of  Dr.  Ebenezer  White,  elder  of  the  Somers 
Church,  against  the  resolutions  of  disapproval  of  the 
action  of  the  Assembly  of  1836,  revealed  his  sympathies 
with  the  New  School  party.  That  church  was  divided  in 
sentiment.  About  one  year  later,  October  4,  1837,  "irregu- 
larities "  at  Somers  were  reported  to  the  Presbytery,  and  a 
commission  was  "appointed  to  visit  Somers  and  inquire  into 
these  matters,  and  to  take  such  order  as  they  may  deem 
proper."  It  was  ordered  that  the  Session  of  the  church 
should  meet  and  "  do  such  business  as  may  be  necessary." 
Charges  were  brought  before  the  Presbytery  against  Dr. 
White,  March  13,  1838.  He  was  arraigned  for  "promoting 
schism,"  for  "  endeavoring  to  prevent  the  administration  of 
the  Lord's  Supper  at  the  appointed  time,"  for  "  violating  his 
own  promise,"  and  for  "falsehood  and  misrepresentation." 
Jacob  Green  conducted  the  prosecution  and  Robert  B.  E. 
McLeod  assisted  in  the  defence.  Testimony  was  taken,  and 
on  June  28th  a  verdict  of  guilty  was  rendered,  and  Dr. 
White  was  suspended  from  the  privileges  of  the  church  and 
deposed  from  the  office  of  ruling  elder.  From  this  decision 
appeal  was  taken  to  the  Synod  of  New  York. 

In  October  following  the  Synod  divided  into  two  bodies. 
The  appeal  was  prosecuted  before  the  New  School  one, 
which  reversed  the  judgment  of  Presbytery.  April  17, 
1839,  the  Presbytery  declared  the  appeal  abandoned  and  the 
action  of  the  New  School  Synod  "  null  and  void,"  and 
ordered  the  Session  of  the  Somers  Church  to  drop  from  the 
rolls  the  names  of  members  who  persisted  in  their  adher- 
18 


138  THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  BEDFORD. 

ence  to  Dr.  White.  The  Old  School  portion  of  the  church 
retained  possession  of  the  church  and  parsonage,  while 
for  a  time  the  other  party  worshiped  in  the  Methodist 
Church.  "  A  suit  was  instituted  by  the  Constitutional 
Presbyterians  [N.  S.]  for  the  possession  of  the  church  prop 
erty.  The  cause  was  tried  before  the  Supreme  Court  of 
Westchester  County,  Judge  Ruggles  presiding.  The  jury, 
without  leaving  their  seats,  gave  a  verdict  in  favor  of  the 
plaintiffs."  April  3,  1839,  the  First  Church  of  Somers 
[N.  S.]  was  received  under  the  care  of  the  Third  Presbytery 
of  New  York  [N.  S.].  October  16,  1861,  it  was  transferred  to 
the  Presbytery  of  North  River  and  enrolled  on  the  following 
day.  The  Old  School  party  incorporated  January  20,  1846,  as 
"The  Presbyterian  Church  at  Croton  Falls."  October  7th 
following,  by  order  of  the  Presbytery  this  name  takes  the 
place  of  that  of  Somers.  In  1847  the  present  church  build- 
ing was  erected. 

At  the  time  of  the  Division,  Rev.  Joseph  Nimmo  was 
pastor  of  the  Red  Mills  Church.  His  sympathies  and  those 
of  the  larger  part  of  that  congregation  were  with  the  Old 
School  party.  A  number  of  families  living  at  West  Somers 
were  decidedly  New  School  in  their  views  and  preferences. 
The  latter  withdrew  and  "  connected  themselves  with  a 
Congregational  Church  organized  in  the  Academy  building 
at  West  Somers." 

The  New  Rochclle  Church  severed  its  connection  with 
the  Presbytery  of  Bedford  at  the  Division.  The  jiastorate 
of  John-  Mason  ended  October  19,  1837.  Gorhani  D.  Abbott 
became  stated  supply  shortly  after.  Application  was  made 
by  letter  to  Presbytery,  April  18,  1838,  for  permission  to 
employ  him  for  a  few  months.  It  was  denied,  because  his 
views  on  theology  and  church  government  were  not  known. 
Mr.  Abbott,  it  seems,  declined  to  be  re-examined,  not  be- 
cause his  views  differed  from  the  teachings  of  the  standards, 
but  by  advice  of  his  New  School  brethren.  At  the  next 
stated  meeting  (October,  1838),  Elder  Philemon  H.  Carpenter 
of  the  New  Rochelle  Church  was  present  and  voted  with  his 


NEW    ROCHELLE    CHURCH.  1^0 

fellow  Presbyters  to  adhere  to  the  Old  School  Assembly. 
At  the  same  meeting  a  communication  was  received,  from 
the  church  asking  for  the  -concurrence  of  the  Presbytery  in 
a  petition  to  the  Synod  for  a  transfer  to  one  of  the  New 
York  City  Presbyteries.  This  was  denied.  It  must  have 
been  shortly  after  that  application  was  made  to  the  New 
York  Third,  to  which  Mr,  Abbott  belonged,  to  be  received. 
The  church  apparently  was  assigned  to  the  Second,  after- 
wards Fourth  Presbytery,  to  strengthen  it,  to  which  their 
stated  supply  was  also  dismissed. 

October  2,  1839,  ^  communication  was  received  from  the 
church  and  referred  to  a  committee.  The  report  was  pre- 
sented the  next  day  and  adopted.     It  is  as  follows  : 

"  Whereas  the  church  at  New  Rochellc  has  failed  to  appear  in  Presbytery 
by  delegate  for  a  year  past ;  and,  whereas,  they  are  served  by  a  minister  not 
known  to  this  body.     Therefore, 

Resolved,  That  they  be  recjuired  either  to  discontinue  the  services  of  their 
present  supply,  or  receive  from  this  Presbytery  permission  to  employ  him; 
which  the  Presbytery  are  ready  to  grant  ujion  being  satisfied  of  his  soundness  in 
the  faith  (of  which  they  now  know  nothing)  and  of  his  being  in  other  respects 
a  person  whose  labors  shall  promise  to  promote  the  best  interests  of  that  con- 
gregation. And  the  congregation  are  hereby  informed  that  the  Presbytery  will 
meet  during  the  intervals  of  the  Synod  of  New  York  in  the  city  of  New  York 
on  the  i6th  instant,  when  they  will  e.\pect  to  hear  from  that  congregation  on 
this  subject."     [Records  of  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  Vol.  II,  pp.  221-2.] 

The  church  did  not  comply  with  the  directions  of  Pres- 
bytery. Mr.  Abbott  was  retained,  and  on  the  very  day 
appointed  to  hear  from  them,  October  16,  1839,  ^^^y  were 
received  by  the  Second  Presbytery.  A  committee  was 
appointed  to  visit  New  Rochelle.  April  22,  1840,  the  fol- 
lowing report  was  presented  : 

"  Having  requested  and  obtained  an  interview  with  the  Rev.  Gorham  D. 
Abbott  and  Dr,  Watson  Smith,  the  committee  stated  to  them  the  object 
of  their  appointment.  To  their  assurances  of  friendly  feelings  they  obtained 
no  satisfaction.  Mr.  Abbott's  reply  was:  'Why  can't  the  Presbytery  of  Bed- 
ford let  us  alone  .'' '  And  to  their  enquiries  in  relation  to  the  affairs  of  the  church, 
Dr.  Smith  replied,  '  they  did  not  recognize  the  right  of  the  Presbytery  to  make 
any  such  enquiries.'  The  committee,  however,  ascertained  that  by  the  indi- 
vidual action  of  Mr.  Abbott  and  Dr.  Smith,  the  church  has  become  connected 
with  the  Second  Presbytery  of  New  York  (N.  S.)."  [Records  of  the  Presby- 
tery of  Bedford,  Vol.  11,  pp.  235-6.] 


140  THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  BEDFORD. 

Two  members  of  the  congregation,  Messrs.  Gilchrist 
and  Shepherd,  were  present  at  the  meeting  of  Presbytery 
and  made  statements.  The  matter  was  referred  to  a  com- 
mittee. On  recommendation  of  this  committee  the  Presby 
tery  declared  (April  22,  1840)  that  the  action  "of  the  elder 
of  that  church  in  pretending  to  attach  himself  and  the 
church  to  another  Presbytery  is  irregular,  null,  and  void  ;  — 
inasmuch  as  it  was  done  without  the  concurrence  of  the 
church,  and  against  the  unanimous  agreement  of  the  church 
in  October,  1838,  to  adhere  to  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  and 
without  the  consent  of  the  Presbytery."  The  church  was 
declared  vacant  and  Mr.  Frame  yy^as  appointed  "to  supply 
that  congregation  at  such  time  as  he  shall  be  requested  to 
do  so,  by  those  of  the  congregation  adhering  to  the  Pres- 
bytery." The  name  of  the  church  remained  on  the  roll, 
though  not  represented  by  an  elder,  for  five  years.  April  16, 
1845,  it  was  ordered  erased. 

In  the  first  three  decades,  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford 
lost  three  of  their  churches,  Peekskill,  West  Farms,  and  Mt. 
Pleasant,  by  transfer  by  the  Synod  to  other  Presbyteries. 
Only  in  one  instance  was  their  concurrence  secured.  April 
21,  1847,  i'l  response  to  a  communication  from  the  Synod  on 
the  boundaries  of  Presbyteries,  a  request  was  made  for  the 
return  of  the  Peekskill  Church.  When  the  question  of  re- 
modeling the  Presbyteries  was  up  in  1855,  the  Presbytery 
pronounced  in  favor  oi  a  "  strict  geographical  arrangement." 
October,  i860,  an  overture  from  the  Presbytery  of  Connecti- 
cut was  presented  to  the  Synod,  requesting  for  themselves 
enlargement  or  dissolution.  Apparently  without  consulta- 
tion with  the  I'resbytery  of  Bedford,  four  churches,  Rye, 
Port  Chester,  South  East,  and  South  East  Center,  with 
their  pastors,  were  set  off  to  strengthen  their  neiglibor  on 
the  east.  The  loss  was  regarded  as  a  serious  one,  and  called 
forth  a  vigorous  protest : 

"  Whereas,  the  Synod  f)f  New  York  lias  lately  taken  certain  action  deeply 
affecting  the  integrity  of  the  Presbytery,  therefore 

"  Resolved,   That    Presbytery  submits    to   the   transfer   of   the    churches 


UNION    WITH    THE    CONNECTICUT    PRESBYTERY.  I4I 

already  made  over  to  the  Connecticut  Presbytery,  but  will  strenuously  oppose 
any  further  dismemberment  of  their  body;  and  will  also  expect  Synod  to 
strengthen  this  Presbytery,  which  their  action  has  weakened,  by  the  transfer  of 
those  churches  within  their  geographical  bounds,  which  are  now  by  elective 
affinity  united  to  city  Presbyteries."  [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford, 
Vol.  Ill,  p.  35S.] 

The  Presbytery  had  now  but  twelve  churches  and 
thirteen  ministers.  The  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  after 
its  enlargement,  numbered  only  ten  churches  and  fourteen 
ministers.  It  seems  to  have  been  soon  realized  that  instead 
of  one  weak  Presbytery  there  were  now  two  ;  for  in  two 
years  at  meetings  of  both  Presbyteries,  held  October  22, 
1862,  during  the  sessions  of  the  Synod,  committees  of  con- 
ference on  their  proposed  union  were  appointed.  There  is 
no  minute  of  the  report  of  the  committee,  nor  of  action 
thereon  by  the  Presbytery.  From  the  record  of  the  Presby- 
tery of  Connecticut  (October  23,  1862),  we  conclude  that 
the  conference  committees  decided  to  recommend  a  joint 
overture  to  Synod  in  favor  of  the  consolidation  under  the 
name  of  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut.  The  request  was 
presented  the  same  day  and  granted. 

The  final  entry  upon  the  records  of  the  Presbytery  of 
Bedford  is  as  follows : 

"  Action  of  the  Synod  of  New  York  in  reference  to  the  request  of  the 
Presbyteries  of  Bedford  and  Connecticut  at  New  York,  October  23,  1862. 

"  Resolved,  That  the  request  of  the  Presbyteries  of  Bedford  and  Con- 
necticut be  granted,  and  that  on  and  after  the  third  Tuesday  of  April  next,  the 
said  Presbyteries  shall  be  united  in  one  Presbytery  under  the  name  of  the 
Presbytery  of  Connecticut. 

"  Resolved,  2,  That  the  first  meeting  of  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  as 
thus  formed,  shall  be  held  in  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Patterson  on  the 
third  Tuesday  of  April,  1S63,  at  2  o'clock  p.  M.,  to  be  oi)cncd  with  a  sermon 
by  the  [ircsciu  Moderator,  the  Rev.  C.  W.  Adams. 
A  true  cojiy, 

I.  D.  Wells,  Pantanrnt  Clerk" 
[Records  of  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  38 1.] 

At  the  same  meeting  of  the  Synod  the  South  Green- 
burgh  Church  and  its  pastor  were  transferred  to  the  Second 
Presbytery  of  New  York. 


14^  the  presbytery  of  bedford. 

Permanent  Officers, 
stated  clerks : 


Najne. 

Appointed. 

I. 

Rev. 

Jacob  Green, 

November  3,  1829 

2. 

<( 

William  Patterson, 

April  20,  1852. 

TREASURERS : 

Na7uc. 

Appointed. 

I. 

Rev. 

Chester  Long, 

November  3,  1829. 

2. 

(( 

James  V.  Henry, 

April  22,  1835. 

3- 

(( 

Reuben  Frame, 

October  6,  1841. 

4- 

(C 

William  Patterson, 

October  30,  1850. 

5- 

(( 

David  Irving, 

April  20,  1852. 

6. 

(( 

Andrew  Shiland, 

October  3,  1855. 

CHAPTER  XV. 


The  Presbytery  of  Connecticut. 

THE  Presbyterian  Church  in  Connecticut  owes  its 
origin  to  the  introduction  into  this  country  of  the 
carpet  industryr  The  Thompsonville  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany located  part  of  its  works  at  Thompsonville  on  the 
Connecticut  River,  as  early  as  January,  1828.  Others  were 
erected  at  Tariffville,  twelve  miles  from  Hartford.  To  ply 
the  looms,  weavers  were  brought  from  Scotland.  The  first 
company  of  them  reached  the  former  place  in  October, 
1828,  and  others  followed  from  time  to  time.  The  opera- 
tives at  Thompsonville  attended  worship  at  the  Enfield  Con- 
gregational Church. 

In  December,  1834,  stated  services  were  begun  in  a  hall 
in  the  school-house,  with  the  professors  of  the  East  Windsor 
Theological  Seminary  as  preachers.  This  arrangement  was 
maintained  until  1838,  in  the  latter  part  of  which  year  the 
services  of  the  Rev.  Joseph  Harvey,  D.D.,  were  secured  as 
stated  supply.  The  people  determined  to  organize  a  Pres- 
byterian Church.  Dr.  Harvey  united  with  the  Presbytery 
of  New  York,  and  on  June  25,  1839,  presented  a  request 
to  that  body  for  the  organization  of  .a  church.  The  request 
was  granted  and  a  committee  appointed  for  the  purpose. 
They  met  at  Thompsonville  July  5th,  and  fulfilled  the  duty 
assigned  them.  Eighty-two  persons,  seventy-three  by  letter 
and  nine  on  profession,  were  received.  Elders  were  elected 
and  ordained  on  the  following  day.  A  meeting  of  Pres- 
bytery was  held  there  on  the  9th,  and  the  church  was 
enrolled.  Dr.  Harvey  was  installed  the  first  pastor  on 
the  loth. 


144 


THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  CONNECTICUT. 


The  church  at  Tariffville  was  received  under  the  care  of 
the  same  Presbytery  April  15,  1845,  and  on  July  3d,  Rev. 
Giles  Manwarring  was  installed.  This  pastoral  relation  was 
dissolved  on  October  27th  following.  A  call  was  extended 
to  Robert  G.  Thompson,  then  pastor  of  the  Yorktown 
Church,  and  he  was  installed  March  17,  1846.  Evidently  to 
the  Synod  of  New  York  Connecticut  offered  a  promising 
field  for  the  planting  of  Presbyterian  churches,  for  October 
15,  1850,  the  following  action  was  taken  : 

"  Resolved,  That  the  Rev.  Josei)h  Harvey,  D.D.,  the  Rev.  James  Ely,  the 
Rev.  Gerrish  Barret,  and  the  Rev.  Robert  G.  Thompson,  and  the  churches  of 
Thompsonville  and  Tariffville  be,  and  hereby  are,  detached  from  the  Pres- 
bytery of  New  York,  and  constituted  into  a  new  Presbytery  to  be  known  by 
the  name  of  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  and  that  that  Presbytery  hold  their 
first  meeting  at  Thompsonville  on  the  29th  day  of  October,  1850,  at  eleven 
o'clock  A.M.,  and  be  opened  with  a  sermon  by  the  Rev,  Dr.  Harvey,  and  in 
case  of  his  failure,  by  the  oldest  member  present."  [Records  of  the  Presby- 
tery of  Connecticut,  p.  i.] 

No  definite  geographical  boundaries  were  assigned. 


ROLL    OF    MINISTERS. 


Name.  Church. 

1.  Joseph  Harvey,  P.,  Thompsonville, 

2.  James  Ely, 

3.  Gerrish  Barret, 

4.  Robert  G.Thompson,  P., Tariffville, 

5.  Alexander  Leadbetter, 

6.  A.  Henry  Dumont, 

7.  A.  B.  L.  Myers, 

8.  Chauncey  D.  Lee, 

9.  Thomas  S.  Childs,  P.,      Hartford, 

10.  James  L.  Merrick,  C.  P.,  (South  Amherst), 

11.  Marcus  M.Carleton,F.M.,(Siam), 

12.  George  W.  Connitt,  P.,    Deep  River, 

13.  James  Gubby,  S.  S.,         Prcjvidence, 

14.  Carson  W.  Adams,  P.,     Thompsonville, 

15.  George  A.  Magee,  S.  S.,  Providence, 

16.  Calvin  Terry, 

17.  Nathaniel  Hewit,  P.,         Bridgeport, 

18.  Edward  D.  Bryan,  P.,       Rye, 

19.  Henry  Benedict,  P.,  Port  Chester, 

20.  Geo.  T.  Goodhue,  P.  E.,  South  East, 

21.  Winthrop  Bailey,  P.,        South  East  Center, 


Oct.  29,  1850 

"      *Aug.i2,  1857 

"  "     tSept.  14, 1852 

Oct.  30,  1850,  tApr.  29,  1857 

Apr.23,  1851,*  1865 

"  "      1  Apr.  23,  1856 

June  24, 1851 

June  30,  1852,  t  Jan.  22,  1866 
Apr.  26,  1854 

July  18,  1854,  tApr.  23,  1856 
Oct.  8,  1856,  tFeb.  4.  1862 
Oct.  27,  1857,  tApr.  26,  1859 
Apr.  14,  1S5S 

Dec.    2,  1858,  tApr.  25,  i860 
i860 

i86o,*Fcb.    3,1867 

i860,  tOct.    2,  iS6i 

"      *July  18,  1S68 

"      *Nov.  8,  1865 

"      *Apr.  3c,  1865 


Apr.  25, 
Dec.  3 
Dec.   3, 


*  Died.        t Dismissed. 


ROLL    OF    CHURCHES.  145 

Name.  Church.  Enrolled. 

22.  Charles  W.  Baiid,  P.,       Rye,  Apr.  24,  1861 

23.  Horace  G.Hinsdale,A.P.,Bricigeport,  Oct.  17,  1862 

24.  Epenctus  P.  Ik'iiedict,  P.,  Patterson,  Apr.  21,  1863 

25.  William  Patterson,  P.,     Pound  Ridge,  "  " 

26.  Andrew  Shiland,  P.,         Mt,  Kisco,  "  " 

27.  Samuel  D.Westervelt,  P., Yorktown,  "  "     *Nov.  15, 1865 

28.  David  Teese,  S.  S.,  White  Plains, 

29.  Aaron  L.  Lindsley,  P.,      South  Salem,  "  "     t  1869 

30.  Peter  P.  Heroy,  P.,  Bedford, 

31.  Henry  W.  Snuiller,  P.,     Gilead,  "  " 

S.  S.,  Croton  Falls. 

32.  .\ugustus  H.  Seelcy,  S.  S.,North  Salem, 

33.  R.H. Richardson, S.S.&P.,Red  Mills, 

34.  Thomas  S.  Bradner, 

35.  E.  R.  Beadle, 

36.  Talmon  C.  Perry, 

37.  Saurin  E.  Lane,  P.,  Gilead, 

38.  William  H.  Hodge,  P.,    Red  Mills, 
39    Roswell  D.  Smith,  S.  S.,  South  East, 

40.  Valentine  A.  Lewis,  P.,    Port  Chester, 

41.  Duncan  C.  Niven,  S.  S.,  South  East  Center, 

42.  Nathan  M.  Sherwood,  P.,  Patterson, 

43.  J.  Aspinwall  Hodge,  P.,  Hartford, 

44.  E.  Bailey  Smith,  S.  S.,      (Enfield,  Conn.), 

45.  James  W.  Jolinston,  P.,   Yorktown, 

46.  Homer  S.  Newcoml;, 

47.  Ezra  F.  Mundy,  S.  S.,       North  Salem, 

P.,  Port  Chester. 

48.  A.  R.  Macoubrey,  P.,        South  East  Center, 

49.  William  J.Thompson,  P.,  Croton  Falls, 

50.  Isaac  W.  Cochran,  P.,      Gilead, 

51.  James  Baird,  P.,  Patterson, 

52.  Daniel  S.  Gregory,  P.,      South  Salem, 

53.  Henry  F.  Lee,  P.,  Thompsonville, 

54.  Chas.  IL  Halloway,  S.  S.,  North  Salem, 

55.  Charles  B.  Dye,  S.  S.,      Somers, 

ROLL    OF    CHURCHES. 

Name.  Enrolled.     Pastors  and  Staled  .Supplies.  +       Term  of  Service. 

J.  Thompsonville, Oct.  29,  iSscJoseph  Harvey,  P.,  July  10,  iS5o-Apr.  29,  1857 

C.  W.  Adams,  P.,    Ai^r.  14,  1858-June    i,  1868 

Henry  F.  Lee,  P.,    July  13,  1869-Dec.  20, 1873 

2.  Tariffville,  "         "      G.  Manwarring,  P.,  July    3,  1845-Oct.  27,  1845 

R.  G.Thompson,  P.,Mar.  17,  i846-Sept.i4, 1852 


" 

"      tOct. 

7> 

1863 

" 

"      tApr. 

20, 

1864 

Apr.  28, 

1S63,  iNov 

■  I. 

1864 

Oct.  21, 

1963 

Nov.  17, 

1863,  tApr. 

20, 

1869 

Apr.  19, 

1S64,  tApr. 

18, 

1870 

July  26, 

1864 

Nov.  I, 

1864,  tOct. 

I, 

1867 

May  10, 

1865,  tOct. 

17. 

1866 

" 

"      tjuly 

13. 

1869 

Apr.  17, 

1866 

Oct.     2, 

1866 

Oct.   15, 

1866 

Apr.  17, 

18O7 

Oct.     I, 

1867 

Oct.  16, 

1867 

Oct.  15, 

1868 

July  «3. 

1 868,  tDec. 

13. 

1869 

Apr.  20, 

1869 

May    4, 

1869 

July  13. 

1869 

July  13. 

1869 

Apr.  19, 

1870 

*  Died.         t  Dismissed. 

t  Taken  from  the  records  and  all  available  sources. 
19 


146 


THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    CONNECTICUT. 


Name.  Enrolled.     Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies.!        Term  of  Service. 

Hartford,  Nov.  4,  iS5r,T.  S.  Childs,  S.  S.,  Aug.—,  1851-June  30,  1852 

P  ,  June  30,  iS52-Oct.  19,  1865 

J.  A.  Hodge,  P.,        May    2,  1866 
Deep  River,      Oct.    8,  i856,Geo.W.  Coiinitt,  P.,Oct.    9,  1856- Feb.    4,1862 
Providence,        Oct.  27,  i857,Janies  Gubby,  S.  S.,Oct.  27,  1857-Oct.  13,  1858 

G.  A.  Magee,  S.  S„  Nov.  i,  1858-  1859 

Bridgeport,  ist,  Dec.  3,  i86o,Nathaniel  Hewit,P.,Oct.  31, 1853-Feb.    3,  1867 

H.G.Hinsdale,  P.,  Oct.  28,  1862-Nov.  i,  1877 
Rye,  Dec.  3,  i86o,Edw.  D.  Bryan,  P.,  Oct.    9,  1838-July    i,  1861 

Clias.  W.  Baird,  P.,  May   9,  1 861 -Feb.  10,  1887 

8.  Port  Cliester,  "         "      Henry  Benedict,  P.,Oct.  19,  1854-Apr.  22,  1863 

V.  A.  Lewis.  P.,       Nov.  i,  1864-Oct.    i,  1867 
Ezra  F.  Mundy,  P.,  Mar.  9,  i86S-Mar.  31,  1877 

9.  South  East,  "         "      G.  T.Goodhue,P.E.,May  21, 1859-Nov.  8,  1865 

R.  D.  Smith,  S.  S.,  Sept.—  1865-July    i,  1870 

10.  So.East  Center,       "         "      W.  Bailey,  P.,  June  28,  1854-Oct.  16,  1S61 

Samuel  Bailey,  S.S.,(one  year). 
J.M.Carmichael,S.S.,  "       " 
D.C.Niven.S.S.&.P.E.,  1864-1 

A.  R.Macoubrey,P.,Oct.  23,  1867-Dec.   3, 

11.  Patterson,  Apr.  21,  i863,E.  P.  Benedict,  P.,  Sept.30, 1829-Apr.  19, 

N.  M.  Sherwood,  P., May  10,  1865-Nov.  12, 
James  Baird,  P.,       May  11,1869-May    i, 

12.  South  Salem,  "         "      A.  L.  Lindsley,  P.,    Nov.  10, 1852-Oct.  20, 

D.  S.  Gregory,  P.,    May   4,  1869-Sept.  5, 

13.  Yorktuwn,  "         "      S.  D.Westervelt,P.,Oct.  26,  i8s3-Oct.    4, 

J.  W.  Johnston,  P.,  Oct.  15,  1866-Oct.  17, 
Apr.  21,  i863,Peter  B.  Heroy,  P.,  Oct.  30,  1857-Oct.  16, 
"      A.  H.  Seeley,  S.  S.,  1857- 

Ezra  F.Mundy,S.S.,  1863- 

C.H.Halloway,S.S.,  186S-1 

"  "  Andrew  Shiland,P.,June  14, 1854-Apr.  24, 
"  "  H.  W.  Smullcr,  P.,  May  5,  iS5S-Apr.  22, 
Saurin  E.  Lane,  P.,  Nov.  24, 1863-Apr.  21, 
L  W.  Cochran,  P.,  July  13,  i86S-Dec.  13, 

18.  Red  Mills,  "         "      R.H.Richardson,P.,Oct.  29,  i86i-Oct.    7, 

\Vm.  H.  Hodge,  P.,  May  3,  1864-May  24, 
C.  W.  Adams,  S.  S.,Oct.  — ,  i868-Feb.    i, 

19.  Crotoii  I'"alls,  "         "      Jas.  Sinclair,  S.  S.,    Oct. — ,  1862-Dcc.  27, 

J.  B.  Stoddard,  S.  S.,Apr.  10,  1864-Apr.  — , 
1 1.  W. Smaller,  S.  S  ,July  — ,  1886- Apr.  5, 
W.J.Thompson,P.,Oct.  15,  1868-Apr.    i, 

20.  White  Plains,         "         "       David  Tease,  S.  S.,  July  17,  1853-July    7, 

Aug.— ,  i86s-Oct.  — , 
T.  C.  Steele,  S.  S.,  1870-June  20, 

21.  Pound  Ridge,         "         "       Wm.  Patterson,  P.,  Feb.  10,  1836- Feb.   6, 

22.  German  (Bridgeport),  *Aug.,  1S65,  (Dissolved  Oct.  6,  1869). 


Bedford, 
North  Salem, 


Mt.  Kisco, 
Gilead, 


866 

876 
865 
867 

879 
868 
871 
865 

875 
878 
863 
868 
87. 
870 
S63 
868 
869 
863 
868 
87 1 
863 
866 
868 
872 
864 
869 
871 


*  Organized. 


{  Taken  from  the  records  and  all  available  sources. 


CHURCH    EXTENSION. 


H7 


Name. 

1.  Fergus  L.  Kciiyon, 

2.  Homer  S.  Newcomb, 

3.  James  M.  Anderson, 


LICENSED. 

Da  in. 
Apr.  25,  1861. 
Apr.  22,  1863. 
Apr.  20,  1864. 


Name. 

1.  Thomas  S.  Chi  Ids, 

2.  Marcus  M.  Carlcton, 

3.  Valentine  A.  Lewis, 

4.  Nathan  M.  Sherwood, 

5.  James  W.  JolmstDn, 

6.  Homer  S.  Newcomb, 

7.  William  J.  Thompson, 

8.  Isaac  W.  Cochran, 


ORDAINED. 

Date. 
June  30,  1852. 
July  18,  1854. 
Nov.  I,  1S64. 
May  10,  1865. 
Oct.  1 5,  1S66. 
Apr.  17,  1867. 
Oct.  15,  1868. 
July  13,  1868. 


The  Prcsb)'tery,  at  its  organization,  numbered  but  four 
ministers  and  two  churches.  Though  weak  numerically, 
their  faith  in  the  possibilities  of  the  field  assigned  them  was 
great.  Their  attention  was  first  turned  to  Hartford  and 
New  Haven,  where  many  Scotch  and  Scotch-Irish  Presby- 
terians resided.  As  early  as  June  24,  185 1,  it  was  deter- 
mined to  begin  services  at  both  of  these  points.  At  the  first 
named  place  a  church  of  thirty-four  members  was  organized 
under  the  name  of  "The  First  Presbyterian  Church  of 
Hartford,"  November  4,  185 1.  After  several  fruitless  at- 
tempts, the  Presbytery  ceased  its  efforts  to  secure  a  foothold 
at  New  Haven. 

Stamford  in  1852  seems  to  have  presented  an  opening 
for,  on  April  28th,  Rev.  A.  H.  L,  Myers  was  appointed  to  visit 
that  place  with  view  to  the  organization  of  a  Presbyterian 
Church.  This  was  accomplished,  but  by  the  Third  Presby- 
tery of  New  York  [N.  S.],  on  February  25,  1853.  The  mem- 
bers of  this  church  came  from  the  Congregational  Church 
of  that  place.  October  3,  1855,  the  Presbytery  directed  the 
committee  on  church  extension  "to  examine  particularly  the 
fields  at  Fitchville,  Conn.,  and  Holyoke,  Mass."  "No  report 
is  found  on  the  record  giving  the  results  of  the  committee's 
exploration. 


148  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    CONNECTICUT. 

The  Presbytery  was  more  successful  in  its  efforts  at 
church  extension  at  Deep  River,  Middlesex  County,  Conn. 
July  27,  1856,  nineteen  persons  were  "constituted  'The 
Presbyterian  Church  of  Deep  River,*  "  by  Rev.  Thomas  S. 
Childs.  The  reasons  for  the  organization  of  the  church  are 
given  in  a  minute  entered  on  the  Sessional  Record : 

"  The  members  thus  included  in  the  constitution  of  this  church  were  for 
marly  members  of  the  Consociated  Congregational  Church  of  Deep  River ; 
they  being  truly  and  fully  convinced  that  the  said  Congregational  Church  had 
departed  from  and  denied  the  faith  of  their  fathers  contained  in  the  'Saybrook 
Platform'  as  they  understood  and  believed  it;  and  believing  that  they  had 
used  all  proper  means  within  their  knowledge  and  power  to  prevent  such 
denial  of  and  departure  from  the  faith  ;  and  believing  that  to  continue  in  said 
church  would  involve  themselves  in  the  sin  of  denying  the  true  Gospel  did,  in 
obedience  to  the  word  of  God,  withdraw  from  the  said  church  and  solemnly 
declare  that,  for  such  reasons  as  have  been  referred  to  above,  they  did  not 
'  consider  themselves  as  any  more  belonging  with  them  nor  responsible  to 
them.'"     [Records  of  Presbyterian  Church,  pp.  1-2.] 

The  church  was  received  under  the  care  of  the  Presby- 
tery and  enrolled  Oct.  8,  1856.  The  first  and  only  pastor, 
Rev.  George  W.  Connitt,  was  installed  on  the  following  day. 
His  pastoral  relation  was  dissolved  February  4,  1862,  on  ac- 
count of  the  inability  of  the  congregation  to  provide  ad- 
equate support  We  hear  but  little  of  the  church  after  this 
time.  In  the  years  1865  and  1866,  it  was  recommended  to 
the  Board  of  Domestic  Missions  for  aid.  In  1866  and  1867, 
members  of  the  Presbytery  were  appointed  to  visit  or  labor 
there.  October  17,  1 871,  it  was  dissolved  by  the  Presbytery  of 
Westchester,  and  its  members  attached  to  the  Hartford 
Church. 

April  29,  1857,  a  communication  was  received  in  refer- 
ence to  the  establishment  of  a  Presbyterian  Churcli  at 
Windham,  Conn.,  and  the  Presbytery  voted  to  request  the 
Board  of  Domestic  Missions  to  appoint  a  missionary  to  that 
field  for  six  months.  October  27th  following,  the  Presbytery 
requested  the  Board  to  discontinue  for  the  present  the  sup- 
port of  a  missionary  at  that  place  and  appoint  a  missionary 
for  the  State,  whose  duty  it  should  be  to  look  after  other 
fields  as  well. 

In  1857  a  secession  took  place  from  the  l^roadway  United 


CHURCH    EXTENSION.  149 

Presbyterian  Church  of  Providence,  R.  I.  A  church  was 
organized.  Oct.  2^,  1857,  on  application,  it  was  received 
under  the  care  of  the  Presbytery  and  enrolled  as  "  The 
Scotch  Presbyterian  Church."  Rev.  James  Gubby  was  ap- 
pointed stated  supply  and  recommended  to  the  Board  of 
Domestic  Missions  for  appointment  as  missionary  to  that 
field.  A  call  was  extended  to  him  early  in  1858  and 
accepted.  He  was  not  installed,  and  at  the  October  meeting 
the  call  was  returned.  It  was  directed  that  he  should  cease 
to  be  stated  supply  and  that  arrears  of  salary  should  be 
paid.  December  2,  1858,  Rev.  George  A.  Magee  was  recom- 
mended to  the  Board  as  missionary.  How  long  he  labored 
there  we  do  not  know.  Pie  was  dismissed  to  the  Presbytery 
of  Lcwe.s,  April  25,  i860.  The  church  disappeared,  and 
some  of  its  members  returned  to  the  body  from  which  they 
came. 

A  church,  later  connected  with  the  Presbytery  of  Con- 
necticut, was  organized  without  its  assistance.  The  Second 
or  South  Congregational  Church  of  Bridgeport,  Conn., 
in  1853,  "  became  divided  in  opinion  as  to  questions  relating 
on  the  one  hand  to  matters  of  church  polity,  and  on  the 
proper  course  to  be  pursued  in  providing  for  their  pastor 
[Nathaniel  Hewit],  then  beginning  to  feel  tlie  infirmities  of 
age."  P2ighty-one  persons  received  letters  of  dismission, 
and  on  October  i6th  organized  a  new  church.  On  the  19th 
application  was  made  to  the  Presbytery  of  New  York  to  be 
received  under  their  care.  That  body  met  in  Bridgeport  on 
the  31st,  enrolled  the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  and  in- 
stalled Dr.  Hewit  as  its  first  pastor. 

Notwithstanding  the  efforts  put  forth  in  the  way  of 
church  extension,  the  growth  of  Presbyterianism  within  the 
bounds  of  the  Presbytery  did  not  meet  the  expectations  en- 
tertained at  its  birth.  In  1855,  when  the  question  of  re- 
arrangement of  the  boundaries  of  Presbyteries  in  the  Synod 
of  New  York  was  brought  to  the  attention  of  Presbyter\-  of 
Connecticut,  there  were  nine  ministers  and  three  churches 
on  the  roll.      One  of  the  churches,  Tariffville,  lived  only  in 


150  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    CONNECTICUT. 

name.  Apparently  it  was  asked  —  What  shall  be  clone  with 
the  weak  Presbytery  of  Connecticut  ?  October  3,  1855,  it  an- 
swered for  itself  by  voting  unanimously  in  favor  of  its  own 
continuance  and  strengthening  by  setting  off  to  them  of 
churches  and  pastors.  No  action  seems  to  have  been  taken. 
By  i860,  after  an  existence  of  ten  years,  the  rolls  showed 
nine  ministers  still  and  five  churches — Thompsonville, 
Hartford,  Deep  River,  Tariffville,  and  Providence.  Of  these 
only  the  first  was  self-supporting,  and  the  names  of  the  last 
two  might  have  been  dropped  without  even  a  sense  of  loss. 
October  3,  i860.  Rev.  Carson  W.  Adams  offered  the  fol- 
lowing resolution  : 

"  Resolved,  That  the  Synod  of  New  York  be  requested  to  dissolve  this 
Presbytery  and  permit  its  members  and  churches  to  join  such  Presbytery 
as  each  may  elect."     [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  p.  122.] 

An  overture,  adopted  on  the  recommendation  of  a  com- 
mittee to  which  the  resolution  was  referred,  shows  that  the 
five  ministers  and  one  elder  believed  that  there  was  no  im- 
mediate prospect  of  growth  within  its  bounds,  and  that  en- 
largement must  come  from  without  by  the  annexation  of 
churches.     The  overture  is  as  follows : 

"  The  Presbytery  of  Connecticut  would  respectfully  overture  the  Synod 
of  New  York. 

"  I.  So  to  rearrange  the  bounds  of  said  Presbytery  as  to  include  therein  a 
larger  number  of  ministers  and  churches ;  or  (in  case  the  Synod  should  not 
deem  it  expedient  to  do  this) 

"  2.  To  dissolve  the  Presbytery  and  allow  its  ministers  to  connect  them- 
selves with  such  Presbyteries  as  may  be  to  them  most  convenient."  [Records 
of  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  p.  123.] 

The  answer  of  the  Synod  was  the  transfer  of  five 
churches  —  Bridgeport  from  the  Presbytery  of  New  York, 
and  Rye,  Port  Chester,  South  East,  and  South  East  Center, 
from  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford  —  with  their  pastors  —  Na- 
thaniel Hewit,  Edward  D.  Bryan,  Henry  Benedict,  George 
T.  Goodhue,  and  Winthrop  Bailey.  The  Presbytery  now 
numbered  fourteen  ministers  and  ten  churches.  The  Pres- 
bytery of  Bedford,  as  has  been  shown,  was  dissatisfied  with 
the  change.     Some  of  the  transferred  churches  might  have 


UNION    WITH    THE    BEDFORD    PRESBYTERY.  I5I 

shared  in  this  dissatisfaction.  Certainly  a  committee  was 
appointed  October  17,  1862,  "to  represent  the  Presbytery, 
in  case  application  should  be  made  by  the  church  of  South 
East  Center  of  the  Synod  to  be  restored  to  the  Presbytery 
of  Bedford  ;  and  the  committee  were  authorized  to  urge 
a  union  with  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  should  that  ai)plica- 
tion  be  made. 

This  union  was  ordered  by  the  Synod  October  23,  1862, 
to  take  effect  on  the  third  Tuesday  of  April  following.  15y 
this  union  eleven  ministers  —  Epenetus  P.  Benedict,  William 
Patterson,  Andrew  Shiland,  Samuel  D.  Westervelt,  David 
Teese,  Aaron  L.  Lindsley,  Peter  B.  Heroy,  Henry  W. 
Smuller,  Augustus  H.  Seeley,  Richard  H.  Richardson,  and 
Thomas  S.  Bradner  —  and  eleven  churches  —  Patterson, 
South  Salem,  Yorktown,  Bedford,  North  Salem,  Mt,  Kisco, 
Gilead,  Red  Mills,  Croton  P\ills,  White  Plains,  and  Pound 
Ridge  —  were  added  to  the  rolls,  so  that  in  April,  1863,  the 
Presbytery  numbered  twenty-four  ministers  and  twenty-one 
churches.  The  union  of  these  Presbyteries  seems  to  have 
been  to  most  satisfactory.  There  is  one  exception;  Rev. 
Thomas  S.  Childs,  April  20,  1865,  introduced  an  overture  to 
the  Synod  for  a  division  of  the  Presbytery  and  a  recon- 
stituting of  the  Presbyteries  of  Bedford  and  Connecticut. 
On  October  4th  following,  it  was  voted  to  be  inexpedient. 

Church  extension  was  not  pushed  very  vigorously  by  the 
enlarged  Presbytery,  probably  because  no  opportunities  pre- 
sented themselves.  The  petitioners  for  a  church  at  Brewster's 
Station  had  been  referred  by  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford  to 
the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut.  The  latter,  October  16, 
1 86 1,  appointctl  the  Sessions  of  the  churches  of  South  East 
and  South  Ivist  Center,  as  those  most  interested,  a  com- 
mittee to  "concert  some  arrangements  that  may  harmonize 
the  interests  of  the  people  at  that  station  and  the  churches 
above  named."  What  was  done  is  not  recorded.  About  six 
months  later,  April  23,  1862,  the  Sessions  of  these  churches 
were  directed  to  supply  Brewster's  Station  with  preaching. 
We  have  no  notice  of  any  further  action  on  part  of  the 
Presbytery  of  Connecticut. 


152  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    CONNECTICUT. 

May  10,  1865,  a  request  was  received  for  the  organiza- 
tion of  a  German  Presbyterian  Church  in  Bridgeport,  Conn. 
A  committee  was  appointed  for  the  purpose,  which  dis- 
charged that  duty  in  August.  The  church  did  not  prosper. 
A  committee  appointed  to  look  after  the  enterprise  reported, 
October  6,  1869,  that  it  was  virtually  disbanded,  owing  to 
internal  dissensions  and  other  causes,  and  that,  as  the  Ger- 
man Reformed  Church  had  been  revised,  its  existence  was 
no  longer  a  necessity,  and  recommended  that  it  be  dissolved. 
The  report  was  adopted  and  the  church  dissolved. 

Several  attempts  were  made  to  unite  weak  congrega- 
tions, which  were  contiguous,  in  one  self-supporting  church, 
or  for  the  joint  support  of  a  single  pastor.  The  South  East 
Church,  once  one  of  the  strongest  congregations  in  the 
Presbytery,  had  been  weakened  by  removals  and  the  organi- 
zation of  the  South  East  Center  Church.  After  Mr. 
McLeod's  death  they  were  no  longer  able  to  support  a  pas- 
tor. It  became  necessary  to  secure  aid  from  the  Board  of 
Domestic  Missions.  April  22,  1863,  a  committee  was  ap- 
pointed to  endeavor  to  bring  about  a  union  between  this 
church  and  the  one  at  the  Center.  They  reported  at  the 
next  stated  meeting  that  it  was  inexpedient  at  that  time. 
The  churches  at  Croton  Falls  and  North  Salem  both  re- 
quired aid.     An  effort  was  made  to  unite  them  in  October, 

1863.  The  committee    to   visit   them    reported,   April   20, 

1864,  that  the  way  was  not  open  for  the  proposed  union. 
The  church  at  Croton  Falls  was  situated  but  a  short  dis- 
tance from  that  of  Somers,  from  which  it  had  separated 
through  the  division"  of  1837.  The  latter  was  under  the 
care  of  the  Presbytery  of  North  River  (N.S.)  It  was  pro- 
posed to  unite  these  churches.  A  committee  from  that 
body,  consisting  of  Rev.  E.  G.  Cobb  and  Elder  Edward 
Wells,  appeared  at  a  meeting  at  Bedford,  October  4,  1865, 
and  expressed  "their  friendly  and  fraternal  sentiments"  in 
view  of  it.     The  following  minute  was  adopted  : 

"  Whereas,  the  committee  appointed  by  the  Presbytery  of  North  River 
has  communicated  to  us  some  action  pertaining  to  the  union  of  the  churches 


THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    CONNIiCTICUT.  1 53 

of  Somerstown  and  Croton  Falls  taken  at  their  last  meeting:  We  cordially 
reciprocate  the  Christian  candor  and  courtesy  with  which  this  acticm  has  been 
communicated  to  us ;  and  further,  this  body  will  rejoice  in  any  union  between 
said  churches  which  may  be  consistent  with  the  desire  and  welfare  uf  both." 
[Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  pp.  258-9.] 

A  committee  was  appointed  to  visit  the  church  at  Croton 
Falls.  At  the  next  meeting  the  committee  reported  in  part. 
The  union  was  never  consummated. 

The  Reunion  of  1869  brought  about  changes  in  the 
Presbyteries.  The  Presbytery  of  Connecticut  gave  place  to 
the  Presbytery  of  Westchester,  which  was  erected  by  the 
Synod  of  New  York  June  21,  1870.  At  its  dissolution  the 
former  numbered  twenty-nine  ministers  and  twenty-one 
churches. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


The  Presbytery  of  Connecticut  continued. 

THE  spiritual  condition  of  the  churches  is  shown  by  the 
statistical  reports  and  the  narratives.  Unfortunately, 
the  latter  were  not  entered  upon  the  minutes  from  1859  to 
1867  inclusive.  There  seems  to  have  been  no  general 
revival,  unless  the  unusually  large  number  of  additions  by 
examination  (192)  reported  in  1867  indicates  it.  From  the 
narratives  and  other  reliable  sources  we  learn  of  special 
works  of  grace  in  individual  churches.  Tariff ville  reported, 
October,  185 1,  twenty-one  additions,  fifteen  on  profession; 
Thompsonville  in  1858  received  seventy,  only  sixteen  by 
certificate;  and  Yorktown  in  1868  and  1869  forty-three, 
seven  by  letter.  In  October,  1869,  additions  of  nineteen 
and  twenty  were  reported.  During  the  entire  history  of 
the  Presbytery  927  were  added  on  examination  and  613  on 
certificate,  making  a  total  of  1540  additions.  Sabbath- 
schools  were  maintained  in  all  the  churches.  Presbyterial 
visitations  were  held  at  irregular  intervals,  beginning  with 
the  winter  of  1858-9.  The  sins  of  which  special  mention 
is  made  are  the  same  which  were  reported  to  previous  Pres- 
byteries—  Sabbath  desecration  and  intemperance. 

An  overture  was  received  April  19,  1865,  from  the  Ses- 
sion of  the  Bedford  Church  on  "  the  traffic  in  milk  on  the 
Sabbath,"  and  was  referred  to  a  special  committee,  who  re- 
ported on  May  loth  following,  deprecating  the  evil,  present- 
ing the  arguments  against  it,  and  recommending  that  the 
commissioners  to  the  General  Assembly  be  instructed  to 
bring  the  report  to  the  attention  of  that  body,  and  ask  such 
action  as  will    lead    to   its  suppression.      The    report    was 


STATISTICAL    REt^ORTS.  t55 

adopted  and  presented  to  the  Assembly  of  1865.  It  was 
referred  to  a  special  committee,  which  reported  in  1867. 
After  discijssion  it  was 

"  Resolved,  That  in  view  of  the  difficulties  by  which  this  subject  is 
encompassed,  it  is  inexpedient  at  present  to  make  any  deliverance  thereon." 
[Minutes  of  General  Assembly  (O.  S.),  1867,  p.  316.] 

The  Presbytery  was  not  satisfied  with  the  result,  and  it 
was  voted  to  appoint  a  committee  to  prepare  a  new  memorial 
and  suggest  a  remedy.  The  committee  does  not  seem  to 
have  been  appointed.     No  further  action  was  taken. 

STATISTICAL    REPORTS. 


No.  c.f 

AnnED. 

Total 

Sabbatli-School 

Year. 

Churches. 

Examination. 

Certificate. 

Communicants. 

Membership. 

1851 

2 

23 

I 

238 

1852 

3 

36 

35 

299 

'853 

3 

24 

14 

327 

1854 

3 

19 

17 

242 

1855 

3 

9 

•3 

240 

1856 

3 

14 

5 

2S7 

lie 

1857 

4 

18 

4 

321 

226 

1858 

No  report, 

1859 

5 

48 

26 

417 

317 

i860 

S 

5 

II 

424 

1861 

10 

36 

29 

823 

575 

1862 

10 

22 

48 

803 

640 

1863 

21 

52 

39 

1843 

1066 

1864 

21 

78 

32 

1785 

1212 

1865 

21 

63 

38 

1780 

1247 

1866 

22 

43 

61 

1817 

12S2 

1867 

22 

192 

63 

2014 

1508 

1868 

22 

89 

60 

20 1  s 

1424 

1869 

22 

76 

59 

2000 

'513 

1870 

21 

80 

58 

1930 

>545 

Total,  927  613 


156 


THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  CONNECTICUT. 


CONTRIBUTIONS. 


Year. 

c 
0 

S 
0 

X 

B 
0 

C 

0 

c 

3 

■a 

1 
1 

c 
.2 

1 

3 

5- 

-a 
c 
3 

fa 

"3 

E 

"to 

1 

t3  m 

c-c 

rt  C 
.  3 

is 

i§ 

oO 
0 

E 

< 

c 
0 

c 
« 

C 
0 

U 

3 
0 

C 
a 

1851 
1852 
1853 
1854 

1856 
1857 
1858 
1859 
i860 

$40 

67 
28 

35 
27 

5 

25 

$88 

16 

60 

52 

39 
28 

39 

^25 

5 

$"?! 

.... 

$13 
16 

i 
$1,300   $157 
905    100 
1,100   .... 

•7C   

45 

15 

12 

5 
5 

! 

•  4,500   .... 
5,500   .... 
3,500     10 
2,41:0    100 

$5 

5 

5 

.  . 

10 

Zl\           T! 

35 

78 

127 

M7 
202 
240 
342 
820 
909 
849 

565 
1,170 

3 

3 

17 

"X-oVi 

45 
222 
176 

651 
676 

7QI 

65 
215 
232 

977 
1,048 
i.cfiS 

3,300   100 

9,410   217 

9.635    61 

13,426   876 

29,662  3,711 

"2-J.C88;  \.0±A. 

1861 

72 

62 

261 

254 

276 

41 
21 

82 
205 

I  C2 

$54 

1862 

1863 
1864 
1865 
1866 

201 

3" 
231 
427 
517 
552 
325 
473 

$125 
123 
159 
157 
159 

921  1,608 

1,264  i>7i8 
1,052!  1,905 
1.4961  2,379 

1,708  2.2.Sn 

AT-j'  6mq 

....   27,112  2,453 
....  33,318  3,256 

20.788   1.700 

1867 
1868 

683 

418 
456 
748 

287 
315 

35° 
530 

1869 
1870 

5400 
570 

$261 

30,094   2,683 
40,715   2,749 

Tot'lsJ 

9,282 

14403 

S.514 

3.814 

2,645 

3,091  970 

SI 

723 

261 

272,353  21,326 

Total  Specified  Benevolent  Contributions,       .            -            -            -  $39,719 
"      Presbyterial,  Commissioners  and  Contingent  Funds  and  Gen- 
eral Assembly,              ......  1,035 

"     Congregational,    -             -            -            -    '        -            -            -  272,353 

"      Miscellaneous,      .......  21,326 


Total  for  all  purposes  reported, 


i?334.433 


Overtures  in  favor  of  reunion  with  the  New  School 
Branch  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  were  presented  to  the 
General  Assembly  as  early  as  1862.  Resolutions  express- 
ing fraternal  feeling  and  the  hope  that  such  a  union  should 
be  consummated  were  adopted  by  the  next  Assembly. 
In  April,  1866,  the  Presbytery  referred  to  a  special  commit- 

*  Presbyterial  includes  collections  for  Commissioners  and  Contingent  Funds, 
and  for  Relief. 


REUNION    OF    1869.  157 

tee  "  the  proposed  action  of  the  next  General  Assembly  on 
the  following  subjects  :  First,  In  reference  to  the  churches 
of  the  South,  and  the  Assembly's  previous  action  on  the 
state  of  the  country.  Second,  In  reference  to  the  proposed 
union  with  the  New  School  Church.  And  Third,  In  refer- 
ence to  the  report  of  the  Committee  on  Appellate  Courts." 
On  the  second  subject,  on  the  recommendation  of  the  com- 
mittee, the  following  minute  was  adopted  : 

"  In  regard  to  union  with  the  other  branch  of  the  church,  this  Presbytery 
earnestly  desires  the  union  of  all  the  Presbyterian  Bodies  in  this  country,  pro- 
vided this  union  can  be  effected  without  compromising  in  any  way  either  the 
doctrines  or  the  order  of  the  church  as  they  are  prescribed  in  the  Confession 
of  Faith  of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  In  order  practically  to  test  the  matter 
of  union  with  the  other  branch,  this  Presbytery  is  in  favor  of  the  appointment 
of  a  committee  by  the  Assembly,  consisting  of  the  most  judicious  ministers 
and  elders  of  the  church,  to  confer  with  a  similar  committee,  if  such  should  be 
appointed  by  the  other  Assembly,  and  report  upon  the  whole  matter  to  some 
subsequent  Assembly."     [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  p.  273.] 

In  May  of  the  same  year  (1866)  overtures  were  sent  up 
to  the  General  Assembly  from  the  Presbyteries  of  Leaven- 
worth, Muncie,  New  Lisbon,  Madison,  Erie,  and  Oxford,  re- 
questing that  measures  be  taken  at  that  session  to  secure  at 
an  early  day  the  organic  union  of  the  Old  and  New  School 
bodies.  It  was  voted  to  appoint  a  committee  of  nine  minis- 
ters and  six  elders,  provided  that  a  similar  committee  be  ap- 
pointed by  the  New  School  Assembly,  to  confer  "  on  the 
desirableness  and  practicability  of  reunion,  and  if,  after  con- 
ference and  inc|uiry,  such  reunion  shall  seem  desirable  and 
practicable,  to  suggest  suitable  measures  for  its  accomplish- 
ment, and  report  to  the  next  General  Assembly." 

The  committee  reported  to  the  next  General  Assembly 
(1867)  a  document  adopted  by  the  joint  committee,  entitled 
"Proposed  Terms  of  Reunion."  The  report  was  accepted 
and  ordered  to  be  published  for  the  consideration  of  churches 
and  Presbyteries,  and  the  committee  was  continued.  This 
action  was  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  Presbytery  at  the 
Fall  Stated  Meeting  by  the  committee  on  the  minutes  of  the 
General  Assembly,  and  was  referred  to  a  special  committee. 


158  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    CONNECTICUT. 

On  their  recommendation  the  following  minute  was  unani- 
mously adopted : 

"  The  Presbytery  cordially  sympathizes  with  the  earnest  desire  for  reun- 
ion with  the  other  branch  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  expressed  by  the  Gen- 
eral Assembly  of  1866,  reaffirmed  by  the  Assembly  of  1867.  Having  carefully 
considered  the  basis  adopted  by  the  Joint  Committee,  the  Presbytery  feels 
constrained  to  dissent  from  some  of  its  provisions. 

"  I.  We  object  to  the  relation  of  the  theological  schools  of  the  other 
branch  as  being  in  a  great  measure  independent  of  ecclesiastical  control. 

"  2.  But  especially  to  the  doctrinal  basis,  as  being  too  vague,  and  liable 
to  a  latitudinarian  construction. 

"3.  We  venture,  with  great  diffidence,  to  recommend  that  if  a  more  defi- 
nite and  satisfactory  statement  of  doctrinal  views  cannot  be  obtained,  a  close 
alliance  be  effected  between  the  two  branches,  aiming  to  secure  a  cordial  co- 
operation in  all  measures  for  promoting  the  advancement  of  the  kingdom  of 
Christ  in  our  land,  and  throughout  the  world,  in  the  hope  that  an  ultimate  and 
indissoluble  union  may  be  accomplished.  May  God  hasten  it  in  his  time!" 
[Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  p.  322.] 

The  Committee  on  Reunion  reported  to  the  General  As- 
sembly of  1868  an  amended  Basis  of  Union.  The  report 
was  accepted,  the  "  Terms  of  Reunion "  approved,  and 
sent  them  down  to  the  Presbyteries  for  their  action.  The 
Presbytery  at  the  Fall  Stated  Meeting,  October  7,  1868, 
adopted  the  following  resolutions  : 

"Resolved,  I,  That  this  Presbytery  approve  the  Basis  of  Reunion  sub- 
mitted to  the  Prcsbytfcries  by  the  last  General  Assembly. 

"  Resolved,  2,  That  we  would  prefer  in  the  first  [doctrinal]  article  of  the 
Basis,  leaving  out  the  following  words,  viz. :  "It  being  understood  that  the 
Confession  is  received  in  its  historical,  that  is,  the  Calvinistic  or  Reformed 
sense.  It  is  also,  understood  that  the  various  methods  of  viewing,  stating,  ex- 
plaining and  illustrating  the  doctrines  of  the  Confession,  which  do  not  impair 
the  integrity  of  the  Reformed  or  Calvinistic  system,  are  to  be  freely  allowed  in 
the  united  church,  as  they  have  been  in  the  separate  churches."  [Records  of 
the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  p.  357.] 

The  ayes  and  noes  were  called  for  on  the  first  resolution, 
with  the  following  result : 

Ayes  —  Ministers,  Benedict,  Patterson,  Shiland,  Adams, 
Baird,  Hinsdale,  Cochran,  and  Johnston  ;  Elders,  W.  Fisher 
(White  Plains),  Joshua  Teller  (Mt.  Kisco),  E.  Raymond 
(Bedford),  James  Anderson  (Thompsonville),  Albert  Cham- 
berlain (Croton  Falls),  W.  P.  Van  Rensselaer  (Rye),  J.  O. 
Eggleston  (North  Salem),  C.  B.  Pudncy  (Patterson) —  16. 


REUNION    OF    1869.  159 

Noes  —  Ministers,  Smullcr,  Perry,  Mundy,  and  J.  Aspin- 
wall  Hodge  ;  Elders,  E.  Bouton  (South  Salem),  VV.  H. 
Travis  (Gilead),  James  Purdy  (Yorktown),  and  Ephraim 
Sours  (Port  Chester)  —  8. 

The  second  was  adopted  unanimously. 

The  General  Assembly  of  1869  met  in  New  York  on 
May  20th.  The  vote  of  the  Presbyteries,  as  reported  by 
the  Stated  Clerk,  rejected  the  Basis  by  a  large  majority, 
largely  on  the  ground  of  disapproval  of  the  doctrinal  article 
with  its  qualifying  clauses.  The  great  majority  were  in 
favor  of  union  "  on  terms  that  will  not  override  the  Confes- 
sion of  Faith  with  any  special  stipulations."  The  doctrinal 
article  was  amended  to  meet  these  objections,  and  it  was 
ordered  that  an  overture  should  be  sent  down  to  the  Presby- 
teries, which  were  directed  to  meet  on  or  before  October  15  th, 
and  express  their  approval  or  disapproval  by  a  categorical 
answer  to  the  following  question  : 

"  Do  you  approve  of  the  reunion  of  the  two  Ijodics  now  claiming  the 
name  and  right  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United  Slates  of  America 
on  the  following  basis,  namely : 

"The  reunion  shall  be  effected  on  the  doctrinal  and  ecclesiastical  basis  of 
our  connnon  Standards ;  the  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments  shall 
be  acknowledged  to  be  the  inspired  word  of  God,  and  the  only  infallible  rule 
of  faith  and  practice ;  the  Confession  of  Faith  shall  C(jntinue  t(j  be  sincerely 
received  and  adopted  as  containing  the  system  of  doctrine  taught  in  the  Holy 
Scriptures ;  and  the  Government  and  Discipline  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
in  the  United  States  shall  be  approved  as  containing  the  principles  and  rules 
of  our  polity?"     [Minutes  of  the  General  Assembly  (O.  S.),  pp.  914-15.] 

The  Presbyteries  were  directed  to  forward  their  answers 
to  the  State  1  Clerk  before  November  1st.  The  Assembly 
adjourned  to  nuvt  in  the  city  of  Pittsburgh,  Pa.,  on  the 
second  Wednesday  of  November.  The  Presbytery  of  Con- 
necticut at  the  P'all  Stated  Meeting  held  at  South  East 
Center,  N.  Y.,  October  6th,  answered  the  overture  "unani- 
mously in  the  affirmative,"  twenty  ministers  and  fourteen 
elders  voting.  Rev.  Epenetus  Benedict  led  in  prayer  "  in 
view  of  the  result  of  the  vote." 

The  Assembly   met  according  to  adjournment.     It  was 


l6o  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    CONNECTICUT. 

found  that  of  the  one  hundred  and  forty-four  Presbyteries, 
one  hundred  and  twenty-six  answered  in  the  affirmative,  and 
only  three  in  the  negative,  A  communication  was  received 
from  the  New  School  Assembly  that  all  the  Presbyteries  of 
that  branch  of  the  church  had  answered  in  the  affirmative. 
Friday,  November  12,  1869,  the  Basis  of  the  Reunion  was 
declared  to  be  of  binding  force,  and  the  two  branches  of  the 
church,  after  thirty-two  years  of  separation,  became  one. 

The  Reunion  very  much  increased  the  number  of  com- 
missioners to  the  General  Assembly.  Consequently  the 
question  of  representation  came  up  for  consideration.  The 
Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  April  19,  1870,  at  what  proved  to 
be  their  last  meeting,  expressed  their  views  in  the  following 
resolutions : 

"Resolved,  i,  That  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut  is  unqualifiedly  op- 
posed to  the  radical  change  proposed  by  the  Committee  on  Reconstruction  as 
to  the  constitution  of  the  General  Assembly,  viz. :  that  it  be  composed  of  dele- 
gates from  the  Synods,  instead,  as  always  heretofore,  from  Presbyteries. 

"  Resolved,  2,  That  it  is  our  judgment  that  the  basis  of  representation 
should  be,  not  the  number  of  ministers  belonging  to  a  Presbytery,  but  the 
number  of  pastoral  charges  therein. 

"  Resolved,  3,  That  Presbytery  expresses  its  acquiescence  in  the  other 
recommendations  of  the  committee,  save  that  the  constitutional  change  pro- 
posed with  reference  to  the  last  number  of  members  necessary  to  constitute  a 
Presbytery  be  altered  to  read  thus,  five  ministers  having  charge  of  congrega- 
tions."    [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  p.  42S.] 

At  the  stated  meeting  of  October,  1864,  the  Presbytery 
felt  called  upon  to  place  upon  record  resolutions  on  the  state 
of  the  country. 

"  Without  encroaching  upon  the  domain  of  partizan  politics,  and  viewing 
existing  facts  as  related  to  the  advancement  of  that  kingdom  which  is  drawing 
all  nations  into  itself,  and  which  shall  endure  forever, 

•"The  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  deeply  impressed  with  the  vast  interests 
at  stake  in  the  solemn  crisis  through  which  our  nation  is  passing,  would  hereby 
spread  upon  its  minutes  the  expression  of  its  loyalty  to  the  civil  powers  which 
God  has  ordained  in  these  United  States,  and  to  which  His  Word  commands 
every  soul  to  be  subject. 

"  While  we  deplore  the  evils  of  the  war  caused  by  an  unprovoked  Rebel- 
lion, we  heartily  desire  its  success  in  the  triumph  of  our  Government,  and  in 
the  utter  defeat  of  treason  and  cons])iracy,  so  that  Rebellion  may  be  henceforth 
and  forever  hopeless  in  our  land. 


DEATH    OF    PRESIDENT    LINCOLN.  l6l 

"  We  cannot  but  rejoice  in  the  removal  of  the  institution  of  slaver}-  by  the 
war  power  vested  in  the  Executive  of  our  national  Government,  thereby 
removing  a  local  evil  which  in  time  of  peace  was  protected  by  constitutional 
enactments;  and  we  admire  that  Providence  which  is  thus  destroying  an  evil, 
the  security  and  perpetuation  of  which  were  the  declared  objects  of  this  Re- 
bellion."    [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  p.  218.] 

,  The  Presbytery  was  in  session  in  Bridgeport,  April  19, 
1865,  the  day  upon  which  the  funeral  of  President  Lincoln 
took  i)lace.  At  the  hour  appointed  for  the  funeral  the  Pres- 
bytery engaged  in  religious  services.  The  following  minute 
was  adoi)ted  : 

"  I.  That  while  this  unparalleled  crime  justly  excites  universal  detesta- 
tion and  horror,  the  moral  causes  which  have  rendered  it  possible  should 
awaken  the  profoundest  scrutiny  of  the  people  of  these  States. 

"  2.  That  without  attempting  to  enumerate  all  the  causes,  the  committee 
cannot  refrain  from  calling  attention  to  the  spirit  of  insubordination  to  civil 
authority,  and  the  consequent  disrespect  to  the  administrators  of  that  authority, 
which  have  obtained  a  widespread  and  baleful  influence,  originating  in  the 
neglect  of  the  salutary  restraints  which  all  history  shows,  and  the  Word 
of  God  enjoins,  should  be  imposed  upon  the  passions  of  childhood  and  youth, 
and  thence  ])roducing  the  natural  fruit  of  contempt  of  the  obligations  of  law 
and  its  sanctions,  involving  in  that  contempt  the  executors  of  the  law  from  the 
lowest  to  the  highest  —  and  abounding  in  the  mutual  abuse  of  political  parties, 
the  substance  of  harangues  in  the  presence  of  the  people,  pervading  the 
news|)aper  press,  penetrating  the  halls  of  legislation,  and  even  invading  the 
sanctity  of  the  judicature  and  the  pulpit;  and  thence  by  a  terrible  reaction 
falling  upon  the  young  men  of  our  land,  who  speedily  learn  the  lessons  of 
l)olitical  ])rofligacy  and  dishonor. 

"  3.  That  the  age  of  the  supposed  perpetrator  of  the  crime  and  of  his 
accessories,  calls  public  attention  to  the  state  of  morals  alarmingly  prevalent 
among  large  classes  of  young  men,  who  resort  to  places  of  criminal  amuse- 
ment, and  who  while  contracting  habits  of  expensive  vice,  soon  cast  off  all  re- 
straints of  honor  and  religion,  and  become  capable  of  every  crime  ;  and  that 
the  I'rovidcnce  of  God  speaks,  through  the  unheard-of  atrocity,  with  unequivo- 
cal admonition  to  the  teachers  and  guardians  of  the  young. 

"4.  That  as  Abraham  Lincoln  was,  by  the  overwhelming  voice  of  the 
American  people,  the  chief  representative  of  the  Union,  of  free  institutions, 
and  of  the  national  determination  to  extirpate  the  evil  system  which  has  im- 
perilled the  nation: — so  the  assassins  of  our  beloved  President  may  be  justly 
regarded  as  the  representative  of  the  spirit  of  the  rebellion,  and  of  the  culmi- 
nation of  that  spirit,  which  is  a  spirit  of  intolerance,  cruelty  and  brutality. 

"  5.  That  while  we  bow  with  broken  hearts  to  the  rod  which  has  deprived 
this  nation  of  its  wise,  patriotic,  and  honored  Chief  Magistrate,  we  express 
our  undiminished  faith  in  Almighty  God,  through  His  Son  Jesus  Christ,  the 
21 


l62  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    CONNECTICUT. 

Sovereign  Lord  and  King  of  Nations,  believing  that  He  has  mercies  and 
blessings  in  reserve  for  our  country,  transcending  all  that  He  hath  wrought  for 
us  hitherto  ;  and  we  earnestly  invite  our  people  to  implore  our  covenant  God 
to  forgive  the  sins  which  have  brought  down  His  judgments  upon  us,  and  to 
pour  out  His  Spirit  upon  our  whole  country,  that  the  wastes  which  war 
has  made  may  bloom  again,  broken  ties  be  reunited,  sorrows  consoled,  our 
stricken  country  restored  to  perpetual  peace  and  prosperity,  and  the  kingdom 
of  our  Lord  universally  promoted  and  acknowledged."  [Records  of  the  Pres- 
bytery of  Connecticut,  pp.  231-3.] 

The  General  Assembly  of  1865  prescribed  terms,  upon 
which  ministers  and  communicants,  who  had  taken  part  in 
the  Rebellion,  should  be  readmitted  to  our  Presbyteries  and 
churches,  and  gave  direction  to  the  Board  of  Domestic  Mis- 
sions in  relation  to  the  employment  of  missionaries  in  the 
South.  This  action  excited  much  discussion.  April  18, 
1866,  the  Presbytery  expressed  its  approval. 

"  I.  The  repeal,  or  essential  modification  of  the  deliverances  of  the  As- 
sembly of  i86r,  1862,  1S63,  1S64,  and  1865,  on  the  State  of  the  Country, 
on  Slavery,  and  the  sin  of  Rebellion,  we  regard  as  not  only  inexpedient,  but 
altogether  wrong,  contrary  to  history,  and  opposed  to  the  word  of  God. 

"  2.  In  relation  to  the  directions  given  to  Presbyteries,  prescribing  terms 
of  re-admission  to  members  who  had  voluntarily  aided  the  Rebellion,  we  do 
not  hesitate  to  affirm  that  the  principle  which  guided  the  Assembly's  action  is 
correct;  since  the  Church  is  solemnly  bound  to  examine  into  and  determine 
the  qualifications  of  its  members,  both  lay  and  clerical,  according  to  the  Word 
of  God. 

"  3.  If  it  is  found  that  the  Assembly's  directions  to  the  Board  of  Domes- 
tic Missions  in  relation  to  the  employment  of  ministers  in  the  Southern  States 
are  liable  to  be  construed  into  the  permission  of  that  Board  to  exercise  Presby- 
terial  functions,  we  respectfully  suggest  that  the  liability  to  such  a  construction 
should  be  removed. 

"  4.  Inasmuch  as  the  deliverances  of  the  last  General  Assembly  have  been 
misrepresented  by  opposers,  and  misconstrued  by  others,  we  venture  to 
suggest  the  expediency  of  such  a  declaration  by  the  approaching  Assembly  as 
will  remove  all  misconception  of  the  intent  and  meaning  of  the  last  Assem- 
bly's action,  and  take  away  from  its  opposers  the  weapons  they  are  wielding  to 
wound  Christ  in  the  house  of  His  friends."  [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of 
Connecticut,  pp.  272-3.] 


officers. 
Permanent  Officers. 


i6 


STATED    CLERKS. 


iVaiue. 

Appointed. 

I. 

Rev. 

Robert  G.  Thompson, 

October  29,  1850 

2. 

(( 

Thomas  S.  ChiltLs, 

April  27,  1853. 

3- 

(( 

Charles  W.  Baird, 

October  2,  1861. 

4- 

i( 

William  Patterson, 

April  21,  1863. 

5- 

(> 

Charles  W.  Baird, 

October  7,  1863. 

6. 

<( 

Valentine  A.  Lewis, 

April  17,  1867. 

7- 

<( 

Ezra  E.  Mundy, 

TREASURERS. 

October  i,  1867. 

A^ome. 

Appointed. 

I. 

Rev. 

James  Ely, 

October  29,  1850 

2. 

t< 

Charles  W.  Baird, 

October  16,  1861. 

3- 

Elder  John  Palmer, 

April  21,  1863. 

4- 

Rev. 

Valentine  A.  Lewis, 

April  17,  1867. 

5. 

(< 

Ezra  F.  Mundy, 

HISTORIAN. 

October  i,  1867. 

Name. 

Appointed. 

I. 

Rev. 

Charles  W.  Baird, 

October  2,  1867. 

The  salary  of  the  Stated  Clerk  was  raised,  October   i, 
1867,  from  Sio  to  $20  per  annum. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 


The  Presbytery  of   WestcJiester. 

THE  Reunion  made  many  changes  necessary.  Presby- 
teries covered  the  same  territory,  and  in  some  cases 
were  known  by  the  same  names.  The  Synod  of  New  York, 
at  a  meeting  held  June,  1870,  rearranged  the  Presbyteries, 
assigning  as  far  as  practicable  definite  geographical  bound- 
aries. The  Presbytery  of  Westchester  was  erected  June 
21,  1870.     The  following  is  the  action  of  the  Synod  : 

"  It  is  ordered  —  That  the  churches,  with  their  pastors,  and  all  the  minis- 
ters resident  or  in  active  work  in  the  Counties  of  Westchester  and  Putnam 
(with  the  exception  of  the  church  at  Cold  Spring),  and  in  the  State  of  Connecti- 
cut, be  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester,  to  meet  in  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  Sing 
Sing  on  the  4th  day  of  October  next  at  3  o'clock  p.  M.,  and  to  be  opened  with 
a  sermon  by  the  Rev.  Charles  W.  Baird,  or*  in  his  absence  by  the  Rev.  John  N. 
Freeman;  and  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester  is  hereby  declared  to  be  the 
successor  of  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  and  as  such  entitled  to  the  posses- 
sion and  enjoyment  of  all  the  rights  and  franchises,  and  liable  to  the  perform- 
ance of  all  the  duties  of  the  said  Presbytery."  [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of 
Westchester,  vol.  I,  p.  3.] 

The  churches  within  the  territory  assigned  to  the  new 
Presbytery  had  been  under  the  care  of  three  New  School 
and  three  Old  School  Presbyteries.  Two  —  Peekskill,  2d, 
and  Somers,  belonged  to  the  Presbytery  of  North  River 
(N.  S.)  ;  five  —  Yonkers,  ist,  Stamford,. ist,  Irvington,  'Fre- 
mont, and  Westminster,  to  the  New  York  Third  ;  three  — 
New  Rochellc,  Riverdale,  and  Darien,  to  the  New  York 
Fourth;  one  —  Throgg's  Neck,  to  the  Presbytery  of  New 
York;  four  —  West  Farms,  Peekskill,  ist.  Sing  Sing,  and 
Greenburgh,  to  the  New  York  Second ;  and  the  remainder 
to  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut. 


ROLL    OF    MINISTERS. 


165 


Roll  of  Ministers. 


Bedford, 
Mt.  Kisco, 
(Teacher), 
Sing  Sing, 


Name.  Chvrch. 

Samuel  H.  Cox, 

Cliauncey  G.  Lee, 

Daniel  W.  Lathrop, 

James  Ely, 

William  Patterson,  P.,    Pound  Ridge, 

Dwight  M.  Seward, 

David  M.  Halliday, 

Robert  D.  Gardner, 

William  Huntting, 

Peter  B.  Heroy,  P., 

Andrew  Shiland,  P., 

Charles  E.  Lindslcy, 

Wilson  Phraner,  P., 

Carson  W.  Adams, S.S.,  Mahopac  Falls, 

Charles  W.  Baird,  P.,     Rye, 

James  Baird,  P.,  Patterson, 

William  Life,  (Teacher), 

Horace  G.  Hinsdale,  P.,  Bridgej^ort,  ist, 

Thomas  M.  Gray,  P.,      South  Salem, 
S.  S.,  North  Salem, 
S.  S.,  (New  Lebanon,  N.  Y. 
S.  S.,  North  Salem, 

Ezra  F.  Mundy,  P.,         Port  Chester, 

Talmon  C.  Perry, 

J.  Aspinwall  Hodge,  P.,  Hartford, 

C.  H.  Halloway,  S.  S.,  North  Salem. 

E.  Bailey  Smith,  S.  S., 

George  Nixon,  P., 

P-, 

Alex.  S.  Twombly,  P., 
James  McDoiigall,  Jr., 
Charles  B.  Dye,  S.  S., 
A.  W.  Macoubrey,  P., 
P.. 


Enroli-ed. 
Oct.     4,  iS70,*0ct.    2,1880 

"           "  *Feb.  20,  1 87 1 

"  *Mar.28, 1S63 

"  *Feb.    6,1889 

"  tOct.     4,  1876 

"           "  tjan.  26,  1874 

"  tOct.     4,1871 

"  tOct.     2,  1883 

"  *Oct.  16,  1878 

"          "  tFeb.  23,  187 1 


t  Feb.  23,  187 1 
*Feb.  10,  1S87 
fApr.  21,  1S80 

tOct.  3,  1877 
*Dec.  24, 1883 


(Enfield,  Conn.), 
West  Farms, 
Tremont, 
Stamford,  ist, 

Somers, 

South  East  Center, 

New  Rochelle, 


S.  S.,  South  Ea.st  Center, 
Henry  F.  Lee,  P.,  Thomiisonville, 

Daniel  S.  Gregory,  P.,    South  Salem, 
Nelson  Milla/d,  P.,  •        Peekskill,  2d, 
T.  M.  Niven,  Jr.,  P.,      Greenburgh, 
Alexander  Ncsbit,  P.,     Tremont, 
George  M.  Boynton, 
James  W.  Coleman,  P.,  Darien, 

P.  E.,  New  Haven,  ist. 


tJan.    24,  1881 


lApr.  16, 1872 
§Jan.  26,  1874 
llOct.   19,  1887 

tFeb.  24,  1873 
tApr.  18,1871 
tOct.  7,  1879 
tFeb.  20,  1883 


tNov.  17,  1.S73 
tOct.  4,  1876 
tjuly    2,  1872 

»Jan.  7, 187s 
tDcc.  ID,  1 87 2 
tJan.   iS,  1876 


*  Died,     t  Dismissed.     J  Name  dropped. 
Synod  to  Presbytery  of  New  York. 


§  Deposed.     ||  Transferred  by 


i66 


THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  WESTCHESTER. 


Name. 

Church. 

Enrolled. 

37- 

Roswell  D.  Smith, 

Oct. 

4, 

1870,  tOct. 

19. 

1870 

38. 

Robert  A.  Davison,  P., 

Throgg's  Neck, 

" 

"      tApr. 

15. 

1884 

39- 

Arthur  Potts,  P., 

Potts  Mem'l, 

" 

"      tSep. 

9. 

1875 

40. 

James  W.  Johnston,  P., 

,  Yorktown, 

<i 

"      tOct. 

2. 

1877 

41. 

Homer  S.  Newcomb, 

" 

"      tjan. 

19. 

1875 

42. 

Lewis  W.  Mudge,  P., 

Westminster, 

" 

"      tMay 

7. 

1877 

43- 

John  N.'  Freeman,  P., 

Peekskill,  ist, 

(( 

'"     tJan. 

1 8, 

1876 

44- 

Henry  H.  Stebbins,  P. 

,  Riverdale, 

" 

"      tDec. 

28, 

1873 

45- 

Wm.  J.  Thompson,  P., 

Croton  Falls, 

" 

"      tDec. 

10, 

1S72 

46. 

John  Hancock,  P., 

Mt.  Kisco, 

Oct. 

5. 

1S70,  t  Aug. 

8, 

1876 

47- 

Rollin  A.  Sawyer,  P., 
S.  S. 
P., 

Irvington, 
,  Greenwich, 
Gilead, 

48. 

Faber  Kyllesby, 

" 

"      tApr. 

16, 

T872 

49. 

Ewd.  R.  Burkhalter,  P., 

New  Rochelle, 

Oct. 

26, 

1870,  tAug. 

8, 

1876 

50- 

T.  Ralston  Smith,  P., 

Yonkers,  ist. 

Feb. 

23. 

1871,  tApr. 

17, 

1879 

SI- 

D.  A.  Holbrook,  Tea., 

(Sing  Sing,  N.  Y.), 

Apr. 

'9. 

1871, 

52- 

Daniel  D.  Sahler,  P., 

Gilead, 

" 

"      *Nov. 

12, 

1882 

53- 

LaFayette  Dudley, 

" 

"      tApr. 

15. 

T879 

54- 

Jos.  Greenleaf,  Jr.,  P., 

(New  Canaan,  Ct.), 

" 

"      tJan. 

1 8. 

1887 

55- 

George  Tomlinson, 

" 

"      *July 

16, 

1876 

56. 

Daniel  Gibbs,  H.  R., 

u 

"      *Apr. 

7, 

1881 

57. 

Alex.  B.  Bullions,  S.  S., 

,  Croton  Falls, 

" 

"      tOct. 

4, 

1876 

58- 

James  B.  Bonar, 

It 

"      tjuly 

16, 

1877 

59- 

George  A.  Bowman, 

" 

"      tApr. 

25. 

1877 

60. 

William  Tracey,  F.  M. 

(India), 

" 

"      *Nov. 

28, 

1877 

61. 

Charles  C.  Wallace,  P., 

,  Mahopac  Falls, 

June  20, 

i87i,tjan. 

24, 

1881 

62. 

Thomas  C.  Steele,  P., 

White  Plains, 

" 

"      *Mar. 

29. 

1877 

63- 

Edward  B.  Allen,  P., 

South  East, 

Oct. 

3. 

1S71, 

64. 

Henry  M.  Baird,  Prof., 

,  (University,  N.  Y.), 

Oct. 

4, 

" 

65. 

Frank  A.  Wood,  F.  M., 

(Syria), 

Oct. 

24, 

"      *July 

20, 

1S78 

66. 

Joseph  Beers,  P., 

j  Croton  Falls, 
(  Somers, 

Oct. 

2, 

1872,  t  Jan. 

19. 

1875 

67. 

Henry  M.  Hazeltine,  P., 

,  North  Salem, 

« 

"      tJuly 

24, 

1879 

68. 

Hugh  A.  McKelvey, 

Oct. 

16, 

" 

69. 

James  Deniarest,  Jr.,  P. 

,  Peekskill,  2d, 

11 

"      tJuly 

20, 

1874 

70. 

Evert  Van  Slyke,  P., 

Stamford,  ist. 

Feb. 

24, 

1S73,  tOct. 

4. 

1876 

71- 

Valentine  A.  Lewis, 

Mar. 

3. 

1873,  tApr. 

22, 

1874 

72. 

Isaac  Baird, 

" 

"      tjune 

2, 

1873 

73- 

Donald  Fletcher,  P.. 

Bethany, 

July 

22, 

1873,  tApr. 

21, 

1875 

74- 

Edgar  L.  Hermance,  P. 

,  White  Plains, 

Mar. 

5. 

1874,  *Apr. 

29, 

1888 

75- 

Charles  H.  Burr.  Jr.,  P., 

,  Riverdale, 

« 

"      tJan. 

20, 

1885 

76. 

Fred.  S.  Barnum,  P., 

Thompsonvilje, 

Apr. 

22, 

1874,  t June 

12, 

1888 

77- 

Revilo  J.  Cone, 

Jan. 

19. 

1875,  tJan. 

16, 

1S83 

78. 

Robt.  A.  Blackford,  P., 

Croton  Falls, 

Apr. 

20, 

1 87 5,  tApr. 

21, 

1880 

79- 

William  H.  Smith, 

June 

15. 

1875,  tOct. 

6, 

1875 

*Died.         t  Dismissed, 

ROLL    OF    MINISTERS. 


167 


Name.  Church. 

So.  John  H.  Eastman,  P., "  Katonah, 

81.  Gordon  Mitchell,  P.,       Bethany, 

82.  L.  P.  Cumniings,  P.,       Potts  Meni'l, 
S3    Roderick  Terry,  P.,         Peekskill,  2d, 

84.  James  Morton, 

85.  Carson  W.  Adams,  P.,    West  Farms, 

86.  Richard  P.  H.  Vail,  P.,  Stamford,  ist, 

87.  Charles  E.  Lord, 

88.  Edward  T.  Bromfield, 

89.  J.  Ritchie  Smith,  P.,       Peekskill,  ist, 

90.  Wm.  J.  Gumming,  P.,      Yorktown, 

91.  John  H.  Frazee,  P.,        Mt.  Kisco, 

92.  Sidney  G.  Law, 

93.  John  Dixon,  P.,  Westminster, 
9-j.  Henry  R   Waite,  P.,       Hug.  Mem'l, 

95.  Thomas  S.  Childs, 

96.  IL  A.  Davenport,  P.,      Bridgeport,  ist, 

97.  George  \V.  Gallagher, 

98.  Willis  W.  Dowd,  P.,      Port  Chester, 

99.  Spencer  L.  Finney, 

00.  Charles  H.  Riggs, 

01.  Wm.  K.  Eddy,  F.  M.,     (Syria), 

02.  Geo.  W.  F.  Birch,  P.,     Bethany, 

03.  R.  Randall  Hoes,  P.,      New  Rochelle, 

Ch.,        (U.  S.  N.), 

04.  G.  M.McCampbell,  P.,    South  Salem, 

05.  William  R.  Lord,  P.,      Riverdale, 

06.  Charles  E.  Allison,  P.,  Dayspring, 

07.  James  H.  Hoyt,  P.,         liedford, 

08.  John  Reid,  P.,  Yonkers,  ist, 

09.  Washington  Choate,  P.,  Irvington, 

10.  Willard  Scott,  P.,  West  Farms, 

11.  George  W.  Morrill, 

12.  Lewis  H.  Reid,  Tea.,     (Lakeville,  Ct.), 

13.  James  W.  Johnston,  P.,Mt.  Kisco, 

14.  Julius  L.  Danncr.  S.  S.,  Peekskill,  2d, 
1 1;.  C.  D.  Rice.  '!"ca  , 

16.  Robt.  B.  Mattice,  S.  S.,  Croton  Falls, 

17.  M.  P.  Wclcher,  P.,  Pleasant ville, 

P.,  South  Salem, 

18.  Isaac  L.  Kip,  P.,  Patterson, 

19.  A.  W.  Colver,  S.  S.,       Gilead, 

20.  CharlesJ.  Collins,  Tea.,  (Rye,  N.  Y.), 

21.  Harris  R.  Schenck,  P.,  Mahopac  Falls, 

P.,  Mt.  Kisco, 
122.  E.  P.  Cleveland,  P.,        Darien, 

*  Died.     Dismissed.     J  Name  Dropped. 
Synod  to  Presbytery  of  New  York. 


Enrolled. 

July     8,  1875, 

Nov.  9,  1875,  *Feb.  5>  1878 
"  II  Oct.  19,  1887 
"      tjune    7, 1S81 

Jan.  18,  1876, tjan.  17,1888 

Apr.  19,    "      *Aug.  28, 1887 

June  20,  "  tOct.  3,  1877 
"      1  Apr.  17, 1878 

June  26,    " 

Aug.    8,    " 

Apr.  i8,  1877,  tOct.  21,  1S79 
"      tApr.  15,  1S79 

Oct.     2,    "      tjuly  18,1884 

Dec.    4,   "      tOct.    7,  1884 

Jan.  15,  1878,  t  Jan.  16,1883 

(4  (t 

May  6,  "  tSep.  6,  187S 
May     8,  " 

"      tApr.  21,1 8S0 
May    8, 1S78, 
July  II,    " 

Oct.  I,  "  JlOct.  19,  1S78 
Nov.  21,    " 

Feb.  25,  1879,  tNov.  20, 1882 
Apr.  30,    "      tApr.  18,  1883 

Oct.    8,    " 
Oct.  22,    " 

Jan.  20,  18S0,  tOct.  22, 1888 
"  tjan.  16,  1883 
Apr.  22,  "  tOct.  19,1881 
June  15,  "  tMar.  22,  188 1 
"  tOct.  3,  1S83 
Oct.  5,  "  tOct.  4,1881 
Oct.  20,    " 

"  "      tApr.  21,  1885 

Dec.    2,   " 

Jan.  18,  iSSi,tNov.  23, 1888 
Apr.  19,  "  tOct.  3, 1888 
Apr.  20,  "  tOct.  7,  1885 
June    7,    " 

July     7,    "      tOct.     4,  1882 
§  Deposed.      ||  Transferred   by 


Enrolled. 

'Oct.    g,  i8Si. 

Apr.  19,  1882, 

June  20,    "      tOct. 

4. 

18S2 

Oct.     4,    "       tOct. 

4. 

1SS2 

Jan.  16, 1S83. 

Apr.  18,   " 

"      II  Oct. 

19. 

18S7 

Oct.     3,    " 

Jan.   15,  18S4,  tOct. 

6, 

1885 

Apr.  16,    "      tApr. 

21, 

1886 

Oct.    7,1884, 

Jan.   15, 1884,  tOct. 

6, 

18S7 

Jan.  20,  1885,  tOct. 

5. 

1856 

Mar.   g,    " 

Apr.  21,    "      tjuly 

7, 

1885 

Apr.  22,    " 

July  22,    " 

Oct.    8,   "      llOct. 

'9. 

18S7 

Jan.  19, 1886, 

Apr.  20,    "       t  June 

«5. 

1 886 

168  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    WESTCHESTER. 

Name.  Church. 

23.  Daniel  N.  Freeland,  P.,  Hug.  Mem'l, 

24.  David  Murdock,  P.,        Peekskill,  2d, 

25.  Henry  C.  Baskerville, 

26.  E  T.  Broomfield,  S.  S.,  Darien, 

27.  Frank  V.  Mills,  F.  M., 

28.  William  B.  Waller,  P.,  New  Rochelle, 

29.  Isaac  S.  Davison,  Tea.,  (Yonkers,  N.  Y.), 

30.  Ira  S.  Dodd,  P.,  Riverdale, 

31.  Homer  S.  Nevvcomb, 

32.  John  D.  Long,  P.,  West  Farms, 

33.  Lyman  D.  Calkins,  P.,   South  Salem, 

34.  Addison  p.  Madeira,P.,  Mt.  Kisco, 

P.  E.,  (Independence,  Mo.), 
35    A.  K.  Macoubrey,  S.  S.,  South  East  Center, 
S.  S.,  (San  Mateo,  Fla.), 

36.  Charles  E.  Upson., 

37.  Charles  P.  Fagnani,  P.,  Westminster, 

38.  Elijah  W.  Green, 

39.  Robert  P.  Gibson,  P.,     Croton  Falls, 

40.  J.  Howard  Hobbs,  P.,    Greenwich,  ist, 

41.  Chas.  P.  Mallery,  P.  E.,  West  Farms, 

42.  James  Cr.  Rodger,  P.,     New  Haven,  ist, 

43.  Marcus  Burr, 

44.  Franklin  B.  Dwight,  P.,  Sing  Sing.  "  " 

45.  Marcellus  Bowen,  Tea.,  (Hartford,  Ct.),  "  " 

Agt.,  (Constantinople), 

46.  John  S.  Allen,  P.,  Throgg's  Neck,  May  13,    " 

P.,  Patterson, 

47.  W.  Hart  Dexter,  P.,       South  East  Centre,      June  15,   " 

P.,  Thompsonville, 

48.  Irving  E.  White,  P.,       Peekskill,  2d, 

49.  Christopher  R.  Brown,  Oct.     5,  1886, 

50.  Edward  C.  Moore,  P.,     Westminster,  Oct.     6,    "      tjan.     i,  1S89 

51.  Arthur  Requa,  P.,  Darien,  Jan.  24,  1887, 

52.  Andrew  B.  Morse,  Apr.  ig,   " 

53.  W.  W.  Whipple,  H.  R.,  June  21,    " 

54.  John  S.  Penman,  P.,       Irvington,  June  2g,    " 

55.  Elias  S.  Schenck,  S.  S.,  North  Salem,  Oct.     4,   " 

56.  Alexander  Miller,  P.,     Mahopac  Falls,  Jan.  17, 1888, 

57.  Charles  S.  Lane,  P.,       Mt.  Vernon,  ist.  Mar.  29,   " 

58.  Wm.  Gardner,  F.  M.,     (Corea),  Apr.  18,    " 

59.  John  E.  liushnell,  P.,      Rye,  June  12,   "- 

60.  J.  Ilendrik  dc  Vries,  June  19,   " 

61.  Lewis  H.  Reid,  Tea.,     (Hartford,  Ct.),  Oct.     3,   " 

62.  A  K.  Strong,  S.  S.,  Gilead,  Jan.    15,1889, 

63.  John  H.  Trussell,  S.  8.,  South  East  Center,  "  " 

64.  William  Y.  Brown,  P.,  Portchester,  Fel).  13,    " 

65.  John  F.  Lynn,  P.,  Pleasantville,  May  15,   '* 

*Died.        t  Dismissed. 


ORDAINED.  169 

The  Presbytery  began  its  existence  with  the  names 
of  forty-five  ministers  on  its  rolls,  of  whom  twenty-four  were 
pastors  and  two  stated  supplies.  Ninety-four  ministers  were 
received  from  other  ecclesiastical  bodies,  twenty-five  were 
ordained,  making  a  total  of  one  hundred  and  sixty-three. 
Seventeen  —  Chauncey  G.  Lee,  Alexander  Nesbitt,  George 
Tomlinson,  Thomas  C.  Steele,  William  Tracy,  Gordon 
Mitchell,  Frank  A.  Wood,  Peter  B.  Heroy,  Samuel  Hanson 
Cox,  Daniel  Gibbs,  Daniel  D.  Sahler,  Daniel  W.  Lathrop, 
Thomas  M.  Gray,  Charles  W.  Baird,  Carson  W.  Adams, 
Edgar  L.  Hcermance,  and  William  Patterson  —  have  been 
called  to  their  reward.  Eighty-two  were  dismissed.  The 
name  of  one,  James  Baird,  who  had  applied  for  admission  to 
the  ministry  of  the  Protestant-Episcopal  Church  without 
regular  dismission  from  the  Presbytery,  was  droj^ped  from 
the  roll.  E.  Bailey  Smith  united  with  the  Catholic  Apos- 
tolic Church,  and  was  deposed  from  the  ministry  for  holding 
heretical  and  schismatical  views.  Five  were  transferred  by 
the  Synod,  with  the  concurrence  of  the  Presbytery,  to 
the  Presbytery  of  New  York.  There  are  on  the  roll  the 
names  (jf  fifty-nine  ministers. 

Ordained. 

Name.  Date. 

1.  Edward  R.  Burkluilter,     -         •        -        .        -  October  6,  1870. 

2.  Thomas  C.  Steele, June  20,  1871. 

3.  Frank  A.  Wood,      -. October  24,  187 1. 

4.  Isaac  Baird, March  3,  1873. 

5.  Donald  Fletcher, July  22,  1873. 

6.  Charles  li.  lUirr,  Jr., March  5,  1874. 

7.  John  H.  Eastman,  July  8,  1875. 

8.  Roderic  Terry, November  9,  1875. 

9.  J.  Ritchie  Smith, June  26,  1876. 

10.  William  J.  Gumming, August  8,  1876. 

11.  (leorgc  W.  Gallagher, May  6,  1878. 

12.  William  K.  Eddy, July  II,  1878. 

13.  William  R.  Lord, April  30,  1879. 

14.  Gharles  K.  Allison, .\pril  30,  1879. 

15.  Manfretl  V.  Welchcr, December  2,  1880. 

16.  Harris  R.  Schenck, June  7,  1881. 

17.  Edwards  P.  Cleveland, July  7,  1881. 

18.  Elijah  W.  Green, April  21,  1885. 

22 


I/O  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    WESTCHESTER. 

Name.  Date. 

19.  J.  Howard  Hobbs, July  22,  1885. 

20.  John  S.  Allen, May  13,  1886. 

21.  W.  Hart  Dexter, June  15,  1886. 

22.  Arthur  Requa,  - January  24,  1887. 

23.  John  S.  Perman, June  29,  1887. 

24.  William  Gardner, April  18,  1888. 

25.  J.  Hendrick  de  Vries, June  19,  18S8. 

26.  John  F.  Lynn, May  15,  1889. 

Licensed. 

1.  Henry  J.  Owen, April  19,  187 1. 

2.  Frank  A.Wood, 

3.  Isaac  Baird, April  16,  1872. 

4.  Charles  Wood, 

5.  William  Smith, October  2,  1872. 

6.  William  R.  Terrett,         -        -        -        -  .      -  April  16,  1873. 

7.  Israel  N.  Terry, April  22,  1874. 

8.  Peter  M.  MacDunald, 

9.  Alexander  Scotland, April  25, 1877. 

10.  James  Fitzpatrick, 

11.  George  W.  Gallagher, 

12.  William  K.  Eddy, June  19,  1877. 

13.  *Arthur  G.  Rodgers, January  15,  1878. 

14.  William  H.  Sybrandt, April  17,  1878. 

15.  Frederick  Johnston, April  17,  1879. 

16.  Allan  W.  Draper, 

17.  Edwards  P.  Cleveland, April  20,  18S1. 

18.  William  S.  Kelsey, April  19,  1882. 

19.  Eugene  W.  Lyttle, 

20.  Frank  H.  Hays,      - 

21.  Matoon  M.  Curtis, April  18,  1883. 

22.  John  Montgomery, 

23.  Elijah  W.  Green,  April  16,  1884. 

24.  J.  Howard  Hobbs,  ...--" 

25.  William  Gardner, April  21,  1886. 

26.  Arthur  Requa, April  21,  1886. 

27.  James  W.  Dow, April  20,  1887. 

28.  John  Dunlap, " 

29.  James  K.  Phillips, 

30.  Hugh  Lenox  Hodge, June  12,  1888. 

31.  Richard  Morse  Hodge,  .        .        .        .         " 

32.  Charles  Lyman  Carhart,         ....  April  17,  1889. 
22-     John  F.  Lynn, 

Candidates,  45. 

*  License  recalled  Oct.  17,  1878, 


ROLL    OF    CHUR(5hES. 


i;i 


Name. 

1.  Bedford, 

2.  Bridgeport,  ist, 

3.  Red  Mills, 
Carmcl,  ist, 
Mahopac  Falls, 


4.  Croton  Falls, 


5.  Darien, 


6.  Deep  River, 

7.  Gilead, 


8.  Hartford,  ist, 

9.  Grcenbiirgh,  2d, 

Irvington, 


Roll  of  Churches. 

Enrolled.  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies. 

Oct.    4,  1870,  Peter  B.  Heroy,  P., 
James  H.  Hoyt,  1'., 
"         "        Horace  G.  Hinsdale,  P., 
Henry  A.  Davenjiort,  P., 


Term  of  Service. 
j  Oct.  30,  1857- 
)    Oct.  16,  187S 

Feb.  17,  1880- 
(  Oct.  28,  1862- 
(  Nov.  I,  1S77 

Feb.  14, 1878- 


^  „,    .  ,  c    c    J       Oct.,  1868- 

Carson  W.  Adams,  S.  S.,  j      p^,^    ^^  ^g^^ 


Charles  C.  Wallace,  P.,      {  ^  pcb.'i.'^SSi 


Harris  R.  Schcnck,  P., 
Ale.xander  Miller,  P., 


j  June  7,  iS8i- 

]      May  8,  1887 

Feb.  i,  1888- 

,,,.,,.  T    Ti  r>     i  Oct.  15,  186S- 

W  illiam  J.  1  hompson.  P.,  -J     ^^^j.  ^;^  ^g^^ 

(  Nov.  14,  1872- 

I     May  I,  1874 

Oct.  II,  1877- 

Jan.  I,  1880 

1880-     1884 

Feb.  3,  1887- 


Joseph  Beers,  P., 

Robert  A.  Blackford,  P., 

Robert  B.  Mattice,  S.  S., 
Robert  P.  Gibson,  P., 


«T  ^XT   /-'I  u        (  Mar.  6,  1864- 

*Tames  W.  Coleman,  P.,      <     y^,,     '    ,q_, 

-'  (    Jan.  20,  I074 

Edwards  P.  Cleaveland,P.,  <    -■     ^ ''-     -- 


Arthur  Requa,  P., 
(Dissolved  Oct.  17,  1871). 


Apr.  18,  1882 
Jan.  24,  1887- 


(    May  2,  187 1- 


Nov.  12,  1882 

1883-     1885 

j  Mav26,  1885- 

)     Aug.  I,  1S88 


Daniel  D.  Sahler,  P., 

Anthony  W.  Colver,  S.  S., 

Rollin  A.  Sawyer,  P., 

Addison  K.  Strong,  S.  S.,  Jan.,  1889- 

J.  Aspinwall  Hodge,  P.,  May  2,  1866- 

*CharIes  K.  McHarg,  S.  S.,  {   oS^i'o,l85S 

p  (Oct.  10,  1855- 
^■'1  Nov.  21,  1S64 
(  July  6,  1S65- 
(  Dec.  I,  1869 
(  Oct.  13,  1870- 
}  Apr.  17,  1879 
(  Oct.  13,  1S80- 
I  June  24,  18S8 
June,  1888- 
May  29,  1S89 


John  DeWitt,  P., 

Rollin  A.  Sawyer,  P., 

Washington  Choatc,  P., 
Joiin  S.  Penman,  S.  S., 
1'-, 


*List  contains  names  of  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies  from  the  organization 
of  Church. 


172  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    WESTCHESTER. 

Name.  Enrolled.  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies.        Term  of  Service. 

10.  Mt.  Kisco,  Oct.  4,  1870,  John  Hancock,  P.,  <    g^ '^j.    j^  jg_g 

June  20, 1877- 
Nov.  I,  1879 


II.  New  Rochelle, 


12.  North  Salem, 


13.  Patterson, 


14.  Pcekskill,  ist, 
Peekskill, 


John  H.  Frazee,  P., 

T  ^*T       T      1  *  C      C        S  J^"'    1880- 

James  W.  Johnston,  S.  S.,  j  j^^^  ^^^  jgg^ 

p    j  June  29,  1880- 
^  •'  I    Oct.  28,  1883 

»  jj-  T-w     x-r    J    •  T)  $  Nov.  6,   1884- 

Addison  D.  Madeira,  P.,     <   ^^^^.    '    ^gg^ 

Harris  R.  Schenck,  P.,  May  12,  1887- 

*Peter  Snyder,  S.  S.,  1841-     1842 

Henry  M.  Scudder,  S.  S.,         1843-     1844 

j  Jan.  20,  1845- 

]    Oct.  23,  1848 


Charles  Hawley,  P., 


„,      ,      T-   T  •   J  1       t>        I  J""e  28, 1850- 
Charles  K.  Lnidsley,  P.,     <    ^^^   j,   jg.g 


James  H.  Taylor,  S.  S., 
Erskine  N.  White,  P., 

David  Hopkins,  P., 


1S59-  1862 
Dec.  3,  1862- 

Aug.  3,  1 868 
j  Jan. 7,  1869- 
j     Nov.  I,  1869 


Edward  R.  Burkhalter,  P.,  {  %,f\'%°6 

A    ^1  r,  T^ir         1         Ti    (  Feb.  I,  1877- 

Anthony  R.Macoubrey.P.,  j     q^^.  ,   ^g' 

R.  Randal,  Hoes,  p..  {  ^--'''a 

Arthur  Newman,  S.  S.,  1S81-     1882 

William  B.  Waller,  P.,  Jan.  30,  1883- 

Chas.  H.  Halloway,  S.  S.,         1868-     1871 

TT  HT     TJ  !*•  C      C        i      Fel^.     I,    1872- 

Henry  M.  Hazcltmc,  S.  S.,  j     ^^^_  ^^  ^^^^ 


-,    {  Nov.  6,  1872- 
■'  I  Apr.  30,  1876 


Robert  B.  Mattice,  S.  S., 
Elias  S.  Schenck,  S.  S., 

James  Baird,  P., 

Isaac  L.  Kip,  P., 
John  S.  Allen,  P., 
tWilliam  Marshall,  P., 

David  M.  Halliday,  P., 


18S7- 

TMay  11, 1869- 

(      May  I,  1879 

j  June  22,1881- 

]    Nov.  4,  1888 

May  15,  1889- 

N0V.13, 1832- 

Oct.  12, 1843 

I    Nov.  1, 1843- 

I      Oct.  9,  1S67 


♦List  contains  names  of  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies  fioni  lime  Church 
left  Presbytery  of  P>edford. 

t  List  from  date  of  transfer  from  Presbytery  of  ]*>cdford  to  Second  Presby- 
tery of  N.  Y. 


&OLL    OF    CHURCHES. 


m 


15.  Peekskill,  2d, 
Payson  Church, 


Enrolled.  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies. 

John  N.  Freeman,  P., 
J.  Ritchie  Smith,  P., 
Oct.  4,  1870,  *Daniel  Brown,  S.  S., 


16.  Portchester, 


17.  Potts  Memorial, 

18.  Pound  Ridge, 

19.  Rivcrdalc, 


20.  Rye, 


Livingston  Willard,  S.  S., 
Joseph  McKee,  P., 

Daniel  Bond,  P., 

George  F.  Wiswell,  P., 
Silas  Hawley,  S.  S., 
Elisha  G.  Cobb,  P., 

Charles  II.  Baldwin,  P., 

Nelson  Millard,  P., 

James  Damarest,  Jr.,  P., 

Roderick  Terry,  P., 

David  Murdock,  P., 
Irving  E.  White,  P., 
Ezra  F.  Mundy,  P  , 

Willis  W.  Dowd,  P., 
William  Y.  Brown,  P., 
*Arthur  Potts,  P., 
Lawrence  P.  Cummings,  P 
William  Patterson,  P., 

*Gcorgc  M.  Boynton,  P., 

Henry  H.  Stebbins,  P., 

Charles  II.  Burr,  Jr.,  P., 

William  R.  Lord,  P., 
Ira  S.  Dodd,  P., 
Charles  W.  Baird,  P., 


Term  of  Service. 
(  May  14,  1868- 
]  Jan.  18,  1876 
June  26,  1876- 
(  Nov.  21,1841- 
I  May  4,  1842 
,  (  May  4,  1842- 
•'  (    Nov.  8,  1846 

1847- 
(  May  25, 1848- 
I  Nov.  15,  1851 
j  June  29,1852- 
]  Aug.  19,  1852 
j  Nov.  10, 1852- 
/  Feb.  29,  1856 
1857-  1859 
j  June  20,1860- 
j  Nov.  12,  1866 
j  Apr.  30,  1867- 
I  July  15,  1869 
(  June  14, 1870- 
I  July  7.  1872 
(  Oct.  22,  1872- 
(  Aug.  I,  1874 
(  Nov.  9, 1 87  5- 
I  Nov.  17, 1879 
(  May  2,  1882- 
j   Apr.  21,  1886 

June  29,  1886- 
(  Mar.  9,  1868- 
(  Mar.  31,  1877 
j  May  8,  1878- 
(  Apr.  30,  1S88 
Feb.  13, 1S89- 
(  Apr.  10, 1866- 
\  Sept.  9,  1 87  5 
.,  Nov.  30,  1875- 
j  Feb.  10,  1S36- 
(  Feb.  6,  1 889 
^  Oct.  28,  1863- 
(  June  10,  1867 
j  Oct.  8,  1867- 
I  Dec.  28,  1873 
j  Mar.  5,  1874- 
j  Aug.  I,  1878 
j  Apr.  30, 1S79- 
I   Dec.  12,  18S1 

June  12,  1883- 


(  Mar.  9,  1S61- 
(    Feb. 10,  18S7 


*  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies  from  organization  of  Church. 


174 


THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    WESTCHESTER. 


Enrolled. 


21.  Sing  Sing,  Oct.  4,  i! 


22.  Somers,  ist, 


23.  South  East, 

24.  South  East  Center, 


25.  South  Greenburgh, 
Greenburgh, 

26.  South  Salem, 


27.  Stamford, 


Term  of  Service. 
June  12,  1888- 
Feb. 13, 1849- 
Mar ,  1851 
Oct.  28,  1851- 
Dec.  27,  1885 
j  Apr.  27, 1886- 
)    June  18,  1S89 
^  Apr.  17,  1847- 
I     Apr.  4,  1848 
1848- 
1856- 
1865- 
1866- 
1870- 
1871- 
(  Nov.  14, 1872- 
(      May  I,  1874 
Nov.  14,  187 1- 
(  Oct.  23, 1867- 
I     Dec.  3,  1876 
1878-     1885 
(  Junei5, 1S86- 
}  Aug.  26,  1888 
Dec.  I,  1888- 
Nov.  I,  i86o- 
Apr.  17,  1867 
Thornton  M.  Niven,  Jr.,  P.,  Oct.  14,  1867- 

Daniel  S.  Gregory,  P.,       {  t'A:'t. 

»„   ^         r,  Nov.  8,  187 1- 

Thomas  M.  Gray,  P.,  ^  ^^^.^  ^^^  jg^g 

Henry  J.  Owen,  S.  S.,  1876- 

George  A.  Sceley,  S.  S.,  1877- 

Geo.  M.  McCampbell,  P.,|  ^j^^y'^^^'^tz 

J.  M.  Buchanan,  S.  S.,  1883- 

Lyman  D.  Calkins,  P., 

Manfred  P.  Welcher,  P., 

Ijames  L.  Corning,  P., 

Robert  R.  Booth,  P., 

Dwight  R.  Bartlett,  P., 

Samuel  P.  Halsey,  P., 


Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies. 
John  E.  Bushnell,  P., 

70,  John  P.  Lundy,  P., 
Wilson  Phraner,  P., 
Franklin  B.  Dwight,  P., 

*George  Monilaws,  P., 

D.  D.  T.  McLaughlin,  S.  S., 

W.  K.  Piatt,  S.  S., 

J.  Collins,  S.  S., 

P.  H.  Burghardt,  S.  S., 

C.  B.  Whitcomb,  S.  S., 

Charles  B.  Dye,  S.  S., 

Joseph  Beers,  P., 

Edward  B.  Allen,  P., 

Anthony  B.Macoubrey,P., 

S.  S., 

W.  Hart  Dexter,  P., 

John  H.  Trussell,  S.  S., 

t  William  Meikle,  P., 


(  May  21, 1884- 
\  Apr.  21,  1S86 
June  5,  1888- 
(  Apr.  15, 1853- 
]  Nov.  3,  1856 
j  Mar.  4,  1857- 
\  Feb.  iS,  1861 
(  Apr.  14,  1862- 
(  Feb.  22,  1864 
(  Mar.  13,  1865- 
]   Feb.  18,  1867 


*  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies 
t  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies 
bytery  of  New  York. 

}  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies  from  organization 


so  far  as  known,  from  Division  of  J837. 
from  Presbytery  of  Bedford  to  Second  Pres- 


Name. 


ROLL    OF    CHURCHES 
Enrolled 


175 


Pastors  ami  Stated  Supplies.  Term  of  Service. 

Alexander  S.  Twombly,  P.,  j  '^p^i.-^jS,'  1872 


28.  Thompsonville, 


29.  Throggs  Neck, 


30.  Tremont,  ist, 


31.  West  Farms, 


Evert  Van  Slyke,  P., 
Richard  P.  H.  Vail,  P., 
Oct.  4,  1870,  Henry  F.  Lee,  P., 

Fred.  S.  Barnum,  P., 
W.  Hart  Dexter,  P., 
"        "      *James  Beattie,  P., 

A.  D.  L.  Jewett,  P., 

Robert  A.  Davison,  P., 

John  S.  Allen,  P., 

"      *Charles  C.  Wallace,  P., 

Alexander  Nesbitt,  P., 
George  Nixon,  P., 
"         "      *Matthcw  T.  Adams,  P., 

James  B.  Ramsay,  P., 

Isaac  W.  Piatt,  P., 

George  Nixon,  P., 

Carson  W.  Adams,  P., 

WilUrd  Scott,  P., 


32.   White  Plains, 


33.  Yonkers,  ist. 


(  Apr  23, 1873- 
}  Oct.  6,  1875 
May  II,  1876- 
I  July  13, 1869- 
]  Dec.  20,  1873 
j  July  20,  1874- 
(  Dec.  20,  1887 
Oct.  ID,  1S88- 
j  June  5,  1S56- 
}  Oct,  8,  1861 
(  Oct.  30, 1862- 
(  Apr.  14,  1868 
t  June  17, 1868- 
]  Apr.  15,  1884 
j  May  13,  1886- 
]  Feb.  I,  1889 
(  June  4,  1856- 
l  Feb.  2,  i860 
\  Sept.  17, 1863- 
i  Jan.  7,  1875 
July  8,  1875- 
(  June  22, 1836- 
\  Oct.  19,  1840 
Feb.  2,  1841- 
Mar.  23,  1846 
ct.  28,  1847- 
Feb.  9,  1858 
ov. 10, 1858- 
July  I,  1875 
lay  2,  1876- 
Oct.  30,  1879 


34.  Westminster,  " 

•  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies  from  organization 


(    Feb.  2,  1841- 

i  Oct.  28,  1847- 

{  Nov.  10, 1858- 

\    May  2,  1876- 

j  Jan.  26,  1880- 
\   Feb.  18,  1883 

1   1      IN    T  T>  \  fclj.  12, 1884- 

John  D.  Long,  P.,  j      j^,,^  ^^  ^g^^ 

Charles  P.  Mallery,  P.  E.,       Oct.  6,  1885- 

Thomas  C.  Steele,  S.  S.,    |    j^„^.  J%'^^ 

p     (  June  20,1871- 
■'  \    Nov.  17,  1873 

iTj         ¥     u  11     I  A|)r.  22,  1874- 

Edgar  L.  Heermance,  P.,  j      \,^^^  \^  ^gg 

*Dwight  M.  Seward,  P.,       \  V'^^'  '°'  '^52- 
^  I  J""c  20,  it>70 

T.  Ralston  Smith,  P., 

John  Reid,  P., 

*I\ollin  A.  Sawyer,  P., 


{  Mar.  I,  1871- 
]  Mar.  31,  1879 
Nov.  6,  1879- 
(  Feb. 17,  1S58- 
I      July  I,  1862 


176  THE    PRKSBYTERY    OF    WESTCHESTER. 

Name.  Enrolled.  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies.-  Term  of  Service. 

Samuel  T.  Carter,  P.,  \    .   ^    .!    .o^I 

'      '  I  Apr.  II,  1867 

LewisW.Mudge.P..  P^y^^g; 

T    u      T-v-  n  \  t)Ct.    II,  1S77- 

John  D1.X0.1,  P.,  j  ^^g   ,^_  j^/^ 

CharlesP.Fagnani.P..      \Xr'!o:'% 

Edward  C.  Moore,  P.,         \  J"f  ^°'  '^f  7" 
'      '         j      Jan.  I,  1889 

35.  Yorktovvn,  Oct.  4,  1S70,  James  W.  Johnston,  P.,      {  ^^t'?'  '^8^ 

William  J.  Cumming,S.S.,{f-J-9, 1875- 

P.,     Aug.  8,  1876- 

36.  New  Haven,  ist,     Feb.  24,  1873,  James  W.  Coleman,  P.  E.,  \       J'^"''  '^^4- 
■^  t.      /J1.1  .  ,^         Jan.,  1878 

37.  Katonah,  Apr.  16,  1873,  J'^hn  H.  Eastman,  P.,  July  8,  1875- 

38.  North  New  York,  June  10, 1873,  Donald  Fletcher,  P.,  \  J"^^  ^-'  ^^l^~ 
•^                                    >  ■>            '     I  J'  I  Apr.  21,  1875 

Bethany,  Gordon  Mitchell,  P.,  I  ^Fe'b  V1878 

George  W.  F.  Birch,  P.,         Feb.  5,  1879- 

39.  Huguenot  Mem'al,  Oct.  iS,  1876,  Charles  E.  Lord,  S.  S.,  1876-     1S77 

H.„r.  R.  Waite,  p.,  {""jUA^X 

Daniel  N.  Freeland,  P.,       Nov.  13,  1881- 

40.  Dayspring,  Apr.  30,  1879,  Charles  E.  Allison,  P.,         Apr.  30,  1879- 

41.  Pleasantville,  Jan.  20,  1880,  Ezra  F.  Mundy,  S.  S.,  1880 

ManfredP.Welcher,P.,     |   ^j^^^yV^gg 
John  F.  Lynn,  P.,  May  15,  1889 

42.  Greenwich,  ist,       June  21, 1881,  Rollin  A.  Sawyer,  P.  E.,  18S1-     1885 

J.  H„.,rd  Hobbs,  P.,        5  %'X% 

43.  New  Haven,  ist,     Apr.  20,  1886,  James  G.  Rodger,  P.,  May  12,  1886- 

44.  Mt.  Vernon,  ist,      June  23,  1887,  Charles  S.  Lane,  P.,  Mar.  29,  1888- 

Of  the  origin  of  several  of  the  churches  in  the  field  of 
the  Westchester  Presbytery,  organized  by  other  Presbyte- 
ries than  those  with  which  we  are  specially  concerned, 
we  have  not  yet  spoken.  The  Second  Presbyterian  Church 
of  Peekskill,  known  originally  as  the  Payson  Church,  was 
organized  by  a  committee  of  the  Presbytery  of  North  River 
(N.  S.),  Nov.  17,  1 84 1,  with  eleven  members,  nine  from  the 
First  Church.  The  secession  was  due  to  dissensions  in  the 
parent  church. 


Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies  from  organization. 


CHURCHES.  177 

The  "  First  Presbyterian  Church  of  the  Town  of  Yon- 
kers"  was  formed  April  26,  1852,  by  a  colony  of  forty-six 
members  from  the  Reformed  Dutch  Church.  It  was  received 
under  the  care  of  the  Third  Presbytery  of  New  York,  May 
10,  1852. 

In  1853  residents  of  the  village  of  Irvinj^ton  and  vicinity 
felt  the  need  of  church  privileges.  Services  were  at  first 
held  in  a  building  erected  for  a  stable.  Subscriptions  for  a 
church  were  solicited  with  the  understanding  that  the 
denomination  was  to  be  determined  after  completion  by 
a  vote  of  the  majority  of  the  contributors.  The  majority 
favored  a  Presbyterian  Church.  Application  was  made 
to  the  Third  Presbytery  of  New  York  and  an  organization 
effected  by  a  committee  January  15,  1854.  The  church  was 
at  first  known  as  the  "  Second  Presbyterian  Church  of  Green- 
burgh."  April  ig,  1871,  at  the  request  of  the  church,  the 
ecclesiastical  title  was  changed  to  that  of  "  The  Presbyte- 
rian Church  of  Irvington,  N.  Y." 

The  Tremont  Church  came  into  being  as  "  The  Union 
Presbyterian  Church  of  Upper  Morrisania,"  and  was  en- 
rolled by  the  Third  Presbytery  of  New  York,  November  8, 

1854.  It  began  its  existence  with  twenty-three  members. 
The  Throgg's  Neck  Church  was  organized  July  8,  1855, 

and  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  New  York  October  9th 
following.  Its  corporate  title  is  "The  First  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Throgg's  Neck,  Westchester,  Westchester 
County,  N.  Y." 

The  Westminster  Church,  Yonkers,  N.  Y.,  was  the  out- 
come  of  a    mission    Sunday-school    started    in    September, 

1855.  January,  1858,  eighteen  members  of  the  First 
Church  receixed  letters  of  dismission  and  were  organized 
into  a  church  by  the  Third  Presbytery  of  New  York,  P'eb- 
ruary  3,  1858.  April  6,  1863,  the  church  withdrew  from  the 
Third  Presbytery  and  joined  the  Second. 

'i'he  Riverdale  Church  began   its  existence  October  4, 
1863,  and  was  received  under  the  care  of  the  Fourth  Pres- 
bytery of  New  York  October  I2th  following. 
-3 


178  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    WESTCHESTER. 

The  church  of  Darien,  Conn.,  the  result  of  the  labors  of 
Mr.  James  Coleman,  who  began  preaching  in  a  union  chapel 
April  7,  1 86 1,  was  organized  by  the  same  Presbytery  No- 
vember 4,  1863. 

The  Potts  Memorial  Church  was  organized  March  8, 
1866,  under  the  name  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church 
of  Morrisania.  It  was  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  New 
York,  April  2,  1866.  During  the  same  year  the  name  was 
changed  to  Potts  Memorial,  as  a  tribute  to  the  memory 
of  the  late  Rev.  George  Potts,  D.D.,  of  New  York.  Prior 
to  1866  two  attempts  had  been  made  to  maintain  Presbyte- 
rian services  in  Morrisania.  As  early  as  January  16,  1850,  an 
organization  was  effected  by  the  same  Presbytery,  and  on 
March  isth  following.  Rev.  Richard  C.  Shimeall  was  in- 
stalled pastor.  He  was  released  from  the  charge  March 
II,  185 1,  because  the  church  was  financially  too  weak  to 
support  a  pastor.  The  church  became  extinct.  An  effort 
was  made  to  revive  the  enterprise  and  a  church  was  organ- 
ized May  25,  1857.     It  met  with  no  success. 


CHAPTER    XVIIL 


The  Presbytery  of  Westchester  eoiitiitited. 

PROXIMITY  to  the  city  of  New  York  and  the  rapid 
growth  of  the  population  along  the  railroads  leading 
from  it,  presented  an  opportunity  for  church  extension. 
The  subject  was  brought  up  at  the  first  meeting,  but  no 
action  was  taken  until  the  second  meeting  in  April,  1871, 
when  the  Committee  on  Home  Missions  were  authorized  to 
employ  a  missionary  to  labor  within  the  field  of  the  Presby- 
tery at  a  salary  not  to  exceed  $i8oa  per  annum,  which 
amount  was  to  be  apportioned  among  the  churches  accord- 
ing to  the  salaries  of  the  pastors.  No  missionary,  however, 
seems  to  have  been  appointed.  The  basis  of  the  apportion- 
ment was  found  to  be  unsatisfactory,  and  it  was  left  to 
the  judgment  of  the  committee.  It  was  found  that  the 
funds  required  could  not  be  thus  secured.  The  work  of  the 
committee  was  commended  to  the  churches  and  collections 
were  solicited. 

The  committee,  the  name  of  which  was  changed  to  that 
of  Committee  on  Church  Extension,  September  24,  1873, 
labored  on  amid  many  discouragements,  often  in  debt  ;  and 
through  their  efforts  or  under  their  superintendence,  Kato- 
nah,  Bethany,  Huguenot  Memorial,  Dayspring,  Tleasant- 
ville,  Greenwich,  ist.  New  Haven,  ist,  and  Mt.  Vernon,  ist, 
eight  churches,  were  organized.  The  South  Reformed 
Church  of  New  Haven  was  received  and  reorganized,  and 
the  South  luist  Center  Church  removed  to  Brewster's  Sta- 
tion, with  the  counsel  and  assistance  of  the  committee. 
For  almost  fourteen  years  the  late  Rev.  Charles  W.  Baird, 
D.D.,  was  the  chairman  of  the  committee.  He  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Rev.  Wilson  Thraner,  D.D.,  who  now  fills  the  office. 


l80  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    WESTCHESTER. 

"The  First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Katonah,  N.  Y.," 
was  organized  November  17,  1872,  with  nine  members  re- 
ceived by  letter  from  other  churches. 

The  next  in  the  order  of  time  is  "The  First  Presby- 
terian Church  of  North  New  York,"  which  began  life  May 
12,  1873.  Its  ecclesiastical  title  was  changed  January  18, 
1876,  to  "The  Bethany  Presbyterian  Church  of  New  York." 

October  8,  1876,  thirteen  persons  were  constituted  by  a 
committee  of  Presbytery  "The  First  Presbyterian  Huguenot 
Memorial  Forest  Church  of  Pelham  Manor,  N.  Y." 

A  mission  chapel  had  been  established  in  Yonkers  in 
1871  by  the  P^irst  Church.  It  was  organized  as  "The  Day- 
spring  Presbyterian  Church  in  Yonkers,  N.  Y.,"  April  21, 
1879.  Eighty-two  persons  presented  letters  from  the 
mother-church,  and  these,  with  twelve  others,  made  a  total 
of  ninety-four. 

"The  Presbyterian  Church  of  Pleasantville,  N.  Y.,"  fol- 
lowed January  19,  1880,  with  thirteen  members. 

April  26,  1881,  "The  P^irst  Presbyterian  Church  of 
Greenwich,  Conn.,"  was  formed  by  thirty-two  persons  who 
had  withdrawn  from  the  Second  Congregational  Church. 

The  presence  of  a  large  number  of  Presbyterians  who 
had  come  from  Scotland,  Ireland,-and  the  maritime  provinces 
of  Canada,  made  a  demand  for  a  church  of  that  denomina- 
tion in  New  Haven,  Conn.  "The  P^irst  Presbyterian  Church 
of  New  Haven,  Conn.,"  was  accordingly  organized  with 
twenty-four  members  P^ebruary  19,  1886. 

Seventy-three  persons,  Presbyterian  in  faith,  who  had 
worshiped  at  the  Reformed  Church  of  Mt.  Vernon,  N.  Y., 
seceded  therefrom  and  applied  to  the  Presbytery  to  be 
organized  as  a  church.  A  committee  was  appointed  for  the 
purpose.  They  met  at  Mt.  Vernon  and  discharged  the  duty 
June  23,  1887. 

October  16,  1872,  the  South  Reformed  Church  at  New 
Haven,  Conn.,  applied  to  be  taken  under  the  care  of  the 
Presbytery.     The  Classis  of  New  York,  to  which  it  had  pre- 


CHURCH    EXTENSION.  l8l 

viously  belonged,  had  given  its  consent  to  the  transfer  on 
condition  that  the  church  should  make  arrangements  satis- 
factory to  the  Board  of  Domestic  Missions  of  the  Reformed 
Church  in  regard  to  the  title  to  church  property  and  for 
mone)'S  granted  for  support  of  pastors.  The  matter  was 
referred  to  a  committee.  February  24,  1873,  it  was  resolved 
to  receive  the  church  under  the  name  of  "The  First  Pres- 
byterian Church  of  New  Haven,"  and  a  committee  was 
appointed  to  recognize  the  church  and  install  elders. 

The  committee  performed  this  duty  March  11,  1873.  It 
was  stipulated  later  that  the  Presbytery  did  not  assume  any 
financial  responsibility,  but  would  extend  all  the  assistance 
that  lay  in  its  power.  A  call  was  made  for  Rev.  E.  B, 
Hodge  of  Burlington,  N.  J.  The  Presbytery  of  Monmouth 
declined  to  grant  him  permission  to  leave  his  charge.  May 
13,  1873,  Rev.  James  W.  Coleman  of  Darien  was  called  to 
the  pastorate.  It  was  not  until  early  in  the,  following  year 
that  he  assumed  the  duties  of  pastor-elect.  The  church 
was  recommended  to  and  received  aid  from  the  Board  of 
Home  Missions.  October,  1874,  the  church  building  was 
sold  by  the  Board  of  Domestic  Missions  of  the  Reformed 
Church,  and  the  church  was  houseless.  The  Third  Congre- 
gational church  extended  an  invitation  to  them  to  unite 
with  them.  Many  of  the  members  received  letters  of  dis- 
mission to  that  church.*  January  19,  1875,  the  First  Presby- 
terian church  of  New  Haven  was  disbanded,  the  order  to 
take  effect  on  March  ist. 

The  organization  of  a  church  at  Brewster's  Station, 
N.  Y.,  on  the  Harlem  R.  R.,  was  brought  to  the  attention  of 
the  Presbytery  of  l^edford  as  early  as  1861.  Nothing,  how- 
ever, was  effected  by  either  it  or  the  Presbytery  of  Con- 
necticut. The  necessity  for  a  Presbyterian  service  was  felt 
by  the  Presbytery,  and  in  Ihcir  judgment  this  could  be  best 
secured  by  the  removal  of  the  South  East  Center  Church  to 
that  point.  Resolutions  were  passed  to  this  effect,  April 
21,  1880,  and  a  commission  appointed  to  urge  the  importance 
of  the  step  on  the  church.      The  congregation    expressed 


1 82         THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  WESTCHESTER. 

their  willingness  to  carry  out  the  recommendations  of  the 
Presbytery.  No  steps,  however,  in  that  direction  were 
taken,  and  October  6,  1880,  Presbytery  directed  the  Com- 
mittee on  Church  Extension  to  take  steps  towards  the  estab- 
lishment of  religious  services  there.  Services  were  begun 
in  1 88 1  under  the  direction  of  the  committee  and  the  church, 
the  Baptist  Church  being  rented  for  the  purpose.  In  the 
following  year  a  church  edifice  was  in  process  of  erection. 
With  assistance  from  the  Board  of  Church  Erection  and  the 
Presbytery's  committee,  it  was  dedicated  free  of  debt,  June 
15,  1886. 

In  1874  the  summer  residents  at  Narragansett  Pier, 
R.  I.,  established  a  service  for  non-Episcopal  visitors.  Rev. 
Messrs.  Charles  Hodge,  D.D.,  and  J.  Aspinwall  Hodge,  D.D., 
were  the  prime  movers.  It  was  begun  in  a  hall  August 
9th.  Shortly  after  a  lady  of  Philadelphia  donated  a  lot, 
upon  which  tfje  erection  of  a  stone  church  was  begun.  It 
was  ready  for  service  in  July,  1875.  The  trustees  were  in- 
corporated March,  1875,  under  the  name  of  "The  Trustees 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Narragansett  Pier  for  the 
purpose  of  maintaining  public  worship  at  Narragansett  Pier 
according  to  the  doctrines  and  form  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  in  the  United  States  of  America."  They  are  elected 
by  those  who  sustain  the  services,  subject  to  the  approval 
of  Presbytery.  There  is  as  yet  no  church  organization. 
During  the  winter  months  the  churcji  building  has  been 
placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  Baptists  for  religious  services. 
October  22,  1874,  Narragansett  Pier  was  transferred  by  the 
Synod  of  New  York  from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Presbytery 
of  Boston,  with  their  consent,  to  that  of  Westchester. 

While  these  gains  have  been  made,  there  have  also  been 
losses.  The  church  at  Deep  River  was  dissolved  October  17, 
1 87 1.  The  South  Reformed  Church  of  New  Haven,  recog- 
nized as  the  First  Presbyterian  church,  was  hopelessly  em- 
barrassed financially  when  received,  and  was  dissolved 
March  i,  1875.  The  Somcrs  Church,  at  no  time  a  strong 
church,  about  1875  became  hopelessly  divided  over  the  con- 


LOSSES.  183 

tinuance  of  a  stated  supply  and  about  the  purchase  of  a 
building  at  Purdy's  Station,  as  a  branch  enterprise.  Ser- 
vices were  no  longer  held.  The  attention  was  called  to  the 
church  October,  1876.  It  was  found  that  nothing  could  be 
done  to  bring  about  harmony.  To  liquidate  the  indebted- 
ness incurred  in  the  purchase  of  property  at  Purdy's  Sta- 
tion, the  manse  was  sold.  The  church  was  disbanded  October 
6,  1880.  Since  that  date  occasional  services  have  been  held 
there  by  the  pastor  of  the  Croton  F'alls  Church. 

The  annexation  of  a  portion  of  Westchester  County 
to  the  city  of  New  York  has  brought  about  some  changes. 
In  this  territory  were  located  five  of  our  churches,  Pethany, 
West  Farms,  Pott's  Memorial,  Tremont,  and  Riverdale.  By 
their  situation  they  had  more  in  common  with  the  churches 
in  the  city  than  \Vith  those  of  our  Presbytery.  It  seemed 
necessary  for  them  to  look  to  them  for  spiritual  and  finan- 
cial support.  The  churches  of  Tremont  and.  Morrisania  in 
1880  gave  notice  of  application  to  the  Synod  for  transfer  to 
the  Presbytery  of  New  York.  No  change,  however,  was 
then  made.  The  subject  was  brought  up  again  October  5, 
1887,  when  the  Presbytery  voted  to  offer  no  objection. 
October  19,  1887,  the  five  churches  in  the  annexed  wards, 
with  their  pastors,  were  transferred. 

The  Presbytery  had  on  its  rolls  at  its  first  meeting, 
October  4,  1870,  forty-five  ministers  and  thirty-five  churches. 
October  4,  1887,  the  highest  figures  were  reached  — sixty-two 
ministers  and  forty-one  churches.  At  the  present  time, 
August  I,  1889,  it  numbers  fifty-nine  ministers  and  thirty- 
six  churches. 

The  narratives,  taken  in  connection  with  the  statistical 
reports,  reveal  a  very  decided  advance  in  activity  and  spirit- 
ual life  on  the  part  of  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester, 
as  compared  with  the  Presbyteries  of  which  it  is  the  eccle- 
siastical successor.  The  growth  has  been  more  rapid  and 
seasons  of  revival  more  numerous.  Of  the  eighteen  years 
of  the  Presbytery's  existence,  the  reports  of  twelve  indi- 
cate in  one  or  more  of  our  churches  the  awakeninji  influ- 


1 84 


THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    WESTCHESTER. 


ences  of  the  Spirit.  Some  years  but  a  single  church  has  a 
large  ingathering.  In  others  we  have  good  tidings  from 
three,  five,  seven,  ten,  eleven.  The  most  extensive  work  of 
grace  was  in  years  1876  and  1877,  after  Messrs.  Moody  and 
Sankey  held  meetings  in  the  city  of  New  York.  Accord- 
ing to  the  narratives  there  was  a  deep  and  thorough  awaken- 
ing and  nearly  all  the  churches  reported  large  additions,  in 
fact,  the  largest  in  our  history.  The  statistical  report  of 
1876  gives  438  added  on  examination  and  218  by  certificate, 
a  total  of  656  ;  that  of  1877,  458  on  examination  and  183  by 
certificate,  total  of  641.  The  six  years,  when  no  revivals 
were  reported,  were  not  necessarily  years  of  utter  barren- 
ness and  drought,  though  fewer  were  added.  The  sins 
mentioned  in  the  narratives  are  intemperance.  Sabbath  dese- 
cration, and  worldliness. 


Added  on  e.xamination, 
"         "    certificate, 

Total  added, 


5.704 
3.937 

9,641 


Statistical  Reports. 


No.  of 

Added 

on 

Total 

Sabbath  Scliool 

Year. 

Churches. 

Examination. 

Certificate. 

Communicants 

Membership. 

1871 

35 

310 

234 

4538 

4660 

1872 

34 

293 

215 

4740 

4703 

1873 

36 

183 

182 

489s 

508  r 

1874 

37 

316 

208 

SOJS 

5460 

1875 

36 

277 

126 

5010 

4S38 

1876 

36 

438 

218 

5276 

5203 

1877 

37 

458 

183 

5327 

5560 

1878 

37 

270 

180 

555° 

5374 

1879 

38 

229 

159 

5683 

5648 

1880 

39 

216 

211 

57S3 

61 18 

18S1 

39 

259 

167 

5896 

5714 

1882 

39 

339 

223 

6014 

6219 

1883 

39 

180 

184 

6112 

6i68 

1884 

39 

211 

172 

6138 

6025 

1885 

39 

259 

174 

6063 

6218 

1886 

40 

356 

216 

6137 

6313 

1887 

40 

320 

28s 

6187 

595' 

1888 

36 

363 

321 

6194 

-  5658 

1889 

36 

427 

279 

6543 

5787 

CHURCH    CONTRIl'.UTIONS. 
COLLECTIONS. 


185 


m 

ji 

1 

1 

■i 

Year. 

5) 

_5 

Xt 

.2         W 

.Si 

13 

1 

< 

.2 

ill 
to 

0 

1 

^ 

a 

■^    1     ^ 

S 

a 

.2 

0 

0 

T3 

S              -C 

tl 

0 

w   1 

u. 

U 

cu    I    u 

0^ 

\f. 

CO 

< 

0 
$387 

U 

$"03,955 

s 

.87. 

#8,036 

$6,473 

#4,942 

$615!"  $745 

f  1,160 

$5.36 

?..,iS.^ 

.872 

7,629 

7.077 

2,394 

793     2,339 

.,.56 

691 

.    . 

548 

''45,459 

■873 

7,')03 

5,882 

4,363 

9' 4'   3.467 

','3' 

574 

$859 

.... 

560 

*i8i,o2o 

1874 

9,606 

8,-99 

4,242 

802^   2,574 

','54 

632 

853 

604 

112,227 

'3.49' 

1875 

9,802 

7.7')5 

3,046 

2,649,   6,254 

',340 

785 

678; ... 

6.5 

108,516 

'2.2.53 

1876 

3.555 

5. '53 

667 

490        680 

685 

401 

477|  -•• 

627 

136,5.8 

23,016 

.877 

8,681 

7,<jo8 

»,3" 

752        852 

802 

639 

48.    ... 

596 

120,291 

10,094 

.S78 

7.570 

6,328 

■,547 

424        606 

838 

527 

433!  •••• 

568 

•33,852 

8,876 

.879 

6,647 

5.529 

705 

413        582 

609 

460 

37' 1     •• 

562 

9', 973 

11.403 

1880 

6,940 

5.550 

615 

5 '9       592 

873 

56. 

3781  ... 

647 

95,661 

9,273 

.881 

6,250 

7,4>3 

687 

427'      596 

708 

546 

41SI  .••• 

410 

119.695 

13.356 

1882 

ir.882 

6,397 

12,470 

482,   i,3>5 

1,072 

54' 

378,  .... 

633 

104,278 

12,901} 

1883 

10,163 

6,703 

1,180 

435    '.674 

969 

629 

312    .... 

428 

"3.055 

11,056 

1884 

12,508 

9,704 

1,171 

555       850 

932 

699 

364I  .... 

430 

187,068 

9,7" 

1885 

10,055 

7,308 

841 

576J  2,491 

',35' 

1.237 

356 

$359 

424 

111,225 

9.945 

1886 

11,211 

9, '63 

I,20(J 

509    1 ,687 

',52. 

955 

328 

307 

786 

102,895 

9,458 

1887 

15.708 

8,886 

got 

637    2.34< 

.,526 

1,117 

423 

666 

782 

105,358 

'2,995 

1S88 

'6,137 

8,021 

936 

7571   1,056110,365 

808 

389 

483 

728 

101,763 

•  4,459 

1889 

12,370 

1 

7-345 

791 

7741      920 

1,186 

'.04S 

^4 

450 

728 

101,182 

10,329 

Totals,  $ 

182,653 

36,784 

44,018 

1            1 
'3,523  3 ',62 1 

29,378 

'3,383 

7,939 

2,265 

11,063 

2,275,991 

202,183 

*  Congregational  and  miscellaneous. 


t  Centennial  offering. 


Total  Specified  l^cnevolcnt  Collections, 
"      General  Assembly, 
"      Congregational, 
"      Miscellaneous, 

Total  for  all  purposes, 


$472,627 

11,663 

2,275,991 

202,183 

$2,961,864 


The  fluctuations  are  accounted  for  in  various  \va\s.  Our 
churches  are  doing  valuable  home  mission  work  in  their  own 
midst  in  the  erection  of  chapels  and  the  maintenance  of 
services  therein.  The  outlay  is  included  in  columns  desig- 
nated Home  Missions  and  Church  Erection.  Special  efforts 
account  for  the  large  contributions  at  times.  An  advance 
in  Congregational  often  indicates  the  erection  of  new  church 
edifices.  The  organization  of  new  churches  and  the  trans- 
fer of  five  to  the  Presbytery  of  New  York  in  1887  must  be 
kept  in  mind  in  any  estimate  of  our  contributions.  The 
24 


1 86  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    WESTCHESTER. 

narratives  for  1875,  '6,  and  '7,  speak  of  the  financial  depres- 
sion which  began  in  1874  and  continued  for  several  years. 

No  work  in  our  Presbytery,  as  in  the  church  at  large,  is 
more  promising  than  that  of  the  Women's  Missionary 
Societies.  The  earliest  formed  in  individual  churches  are 
those  of  Bedford  (1823)  and  South  Salem  (May  28,  1834). 
The  former  labored  at  first  for  foreign  missions  ;  and  after 
an  existence  of  thirty  years  its  attention  was  given  solely  to 
home  missions.  The  South  Salem  Society  has  always  had 
foreign  missions  in  view.  In  sympathy  with  the  growing 
importance  of  Women's  Work  and  for  its  enlargement, 
a  Presbyterial  Society,  auxiliary  to  the  Ladies'  Board  of 
Missions,  was  organized  October  i,  1880,  in  the  First  Church 
of  Yonkers,  N.  Y.  It  has  since  become  auxiliary  to  the 
Women's  Board  of  Foreign  Missions  and  the  Woman's 
Synodical  Committee  on  Home  Missions.  In  December, 
1888,  there  were  connected  with  the  Presbyterial  Society 
twenty-eight  Ladies'  Societies,  three  Young  Ladies'  Socie- 
ties, and  ten  Mission  Bands.  From  1 880-1 888  the  receipts 
have  been  : 

For  Home  Missions  and  Freedmen,  .  .  $10,500.87 

For  Foreign  Missions,  ....  10,903.52 

Total,  .....  $21,404.39 

The  earliest  action,  looking  to  a  visitation  of  the 
churches  by  committees  of  the  Presbytery,  was  taken  in 
September,  1873,  when  the  subject  was  referred  to  a  special 
committee  for  consideration,  with  a  request  that  they  report 
at  the  adjourned  meeting  to  be  held  during  the  sessions 
of  the  Synod  in  October.  The  report  was  presented  October 
23d.  It  was  recommended  that  a  visitation  of  the  churches 
by  committees  consisting  of  two  ministers  and  one  elder,  ap- 
pointed by  the  special  committee,  take  place  during  the  fol- 
lowing winter ;  that  the  services  be  held  during  as  large 
a  portion  of  a  week  as  circumstances  permit,  and  that 
the  traveling  expenses  of  the  committees  be  paid  by  the 
churches  visited.     The  report  of  the  committee  was  adopted. 


^RE.SBYTERIAL    VISITATION.  1 8/ 

The  visitation  was  made.  The  Narrative  of  April,  1874, 
bears  this  testimony  to  its  value  :  "  As  a  rule  the  reports 
from  the  churches  refer  to  the  visits  of  the  Presbyterial 
committees  of  visitation  as  productive  of  great  good."  In 
view  of  the  results  the  special  committee  was  continued 
and  directed  "to  report  .some  definite  plan  for  the  guidance 
of  the  Committees  of  Visitation,  the  method  they  shall  pur- 
sue and  the  inquiries  they  shall  make."  The  committee  re- 
pf)rted  October  7th  following,  recommending  that  the  au- 
thoritative visitation  should  be  triennial.  This  plan  was 
adopted.  The  Presbytery  has  permitted  the  appointment  of 
committees  at  the  request  of  the  churches  at  other  times. 

October  3,  1882,  it  was  ordered  that  the  Committee  on 
Visitation  appoint  a  Day  of  Prayer  for  the  Presbytery,  on 
which  a  meeting  of  our  ministers  and  elders  should  be  held 
at  some  convenient  place.  Later  the  administration  of  the 
sacrament  of  the  Lord's  Supper  was  added.  This  service 
has  been  found  so  interesting  and  profitable  that  it  has  be- 
come a  part  of  our  Presbyterial  life,  and  is  held  annually 
about  tlie  first  of  November.  The  large  number  of  churches 
under  the  care  of  the  Presbytery  rendered  it  difficult  to  se- 
cure the  necessary  committees  for  the  visitation  of  all  in  a 
single  year.  October  6,  1886,  on  the  recommendation  of  the 
standing  committee,  they  were  divided  in  three  groups,  one 
to  be  visited  each  year.     This  plan  is  now  in  operation. 

It  was  felt  by  many  that  a  change  on  the  basis  of  repre- 
sentation in  the  General  Assembly  on  account  of  the  Re- 
union and  the  rapid  growth  of  the  church  was  a  necessity. 
An  overture  was  sent  down  by  the  Assembly  of  1875,  pro- 
posing representation  by  Synods.  April  20,  1876,  the  Pres- 
bytery rejected  it  by  the  following  vote  :  Ayes  7,  Noes  29, 
non-lic|uet  i.  It  was  also  rejected  by  a  large  majority 
of  the  Presbyteries.  The  next  Assembly  {1876)  referred 
two  projiositions  to  the  lower  judicatories,  one  making  the 
basis  twenty  ministers  for  each  commissioner,  minister,  or 
elder,  with  a  ])rovision  for  an  equal  representation  of  minis- 
ters and  elders,  and  the  other  changing  the   "  twentv-four  " 


1 88         THE  PRESBYTERY  OF  WESTCHESTER. 

to  fift}^  (Form  of  Government,  XII,  2).  Both  were  an- 
swered, October  4,  1876,  by  the  Presbytery  in  the  negative. 
They  were  act  ratified. 

The  year  1877  produced  two  alternative  schemes  which 
were  sent  down  for  consideration.  The  one  renewed  the 
plan  of  representation  by  Synods  with  the  same  numerical 
basis,  but  with  a  provision  added  that  every  Presbytery 
should  in  due  time  be  represented.  By  the  other  the  basis 
of  representation  by  Presbyteries  was  to  be  changed  from 
"twenty-four  ministers"  to  "forty  ministers  actually  en- 
gaged in  ministerial  work,  as  pastors,  co-pastors,  pastors- 
elect,  stated  supplies,  evangelists,  missionaries,  professors  in 
theological  seminaries,  or  those  assigned  by  the  General 
Assembly  to  the  work  of  the  Church."  April  17,  1878, 
Presbytery  rejected  the  first  by  a  vote  of  ayes  11,  noes  31, 
and  the  second  unanimously.  The  overtures  proved  unsat- 
isfactory to  the  church  at  large. 

The  next  plan  was  referred  to  the  Presbyteries  for  con- 
sideration in  1878.  It  was  proposed  to  change  the  basis  to 
the  "number  of  ministers  and  communicants  combined." 
This  overture  shared  the  fate  of  its  predecessors,  Westches- 
ter voting,  April  15,  1879,  unanimously  against  it.  No 
further  action  was  taken  until  1883,  when  it  was  proposed 
to  change  the  basis  from  "  twenty-four  "  to  "  thirty-six  min- 
isters." This  plan  failed  to  receive  the  necessary  majority. 
Westchester  recorded,  October  3,  1883,  its  negative  vote 
again.  Another  plan  was  sent  down  by  the  General  Assem- 
bly of  1884,  by  which  the  numerical  basis  was  changed  to 
the  extent  that  additional  commissioners  were  not  allowed 
for  fractions  under  half.  Coupled  with  it  was  a  second  over- 
ture denying  representations  to  new  Presbyteries  until  they 
consist  of  at  least  twelve  ministers,  exceptions  being  made  in 
favor  of  foreign  mission  Presbyteries  and  that  of  Alaska. 
Westchester  voted,  April  23,  1885,  in  the  affirmative.  The 
first  overture  only  became  a  part  of  the  constitution  of  the 
church. 

The  reorganization  of  Synods,  their  reduction  in  num- 


CHANGES    IN    THE    CONSTITUTION.  I89 

ber,  and  the  enlargement  oi  their  powers  was  brought  to 
the  attention  of  the  General -Assembly  of  1879  by  overtures 
from  the  Presbyteries  of  New  York  and  Lehigh,  and  re- 
ferred to  a  special  committee.  The  greatly  increased  size 
and  expense,  especially  if  State  lines  were  adopted  as 
boundaries,  were  urged  in  objection.  To  meet  these  objec- 
tions the  committee  presented  to  the  Assembly  of  1880  an 
overtuie  amending  the  Form  of  Government,  Chap.  XI, 
Sec.  I,  so  that  a  Synod  might,  with  the  consent  of  a  major- 
ity of  its  Presbyteries,  become  a  delegated  body.  An  op- 
portunity was  now  offered  of  relieving  the  General  Assem- 
bly of  part  of  its  business  by  enlarging  the  powers  of  the 
Synods.  It  was  proposed  to  make  them  the  courts  of  last 
resort,  except  when  questions  of  "doctrine  or  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  church  "  are  involved.  Accordingly  an  over- 
ture, amending  Form  of  Government,  Chap.  XI,  Sec.  4, 
and  Chap.  XII,  Sec.  4,  to  this  effect  was  proposed.  These 
overtures  were  referred  to  the  Presbyteries  and  adopted. 
Westchester  voted  on  both  in  the  affirmative,  April  21,  1881. 
The  General  Assembly  of  1881  passed  an  Enabling  Act, 
consolidating  certain  Synods.  A  single  Synod  under  the 
new  arrangement  covered  the  entire  State  of  New  York. 
That  Synod,  October  19,  1883,  proposed  by  overture  to  its 
Presbyteries  to  become  a  delegated  body,  specifying  the 
basis  of  rejiresentation.  Westchester  answered,  April  16, 
1884,  in  the  affirmative.  So  did  a  majority  of  the  Presby- 
teries. 

The  revision  of  the  Pook  of  Discipline  and  Judicial  Com- 
missions were  overtured  to  the  General  Assembly  of  1878 
by  the  .Synod  of  New  Jersey  and  the  Presbytery  of  Dayton, 
ami  referred  to  a  special  committee.  Other  oxertures  were 
from  time  to  time  referred  to  the  same  committee  for  con- 
sideration. In  1880  the-  f.rst  draft  of  the  revised  Pook 
of  Discipline  was  ])resented.  It  was  ordered  to  be  printed 
and  distributed  to  ministers  and  sessions.  The  Assembly 
of  1 88 1  relieved  the  committee  from  the  duty  of  revising 
the  Form  of   Government,  except    so   far    as    mere   \erbal 


IQO  THE  Presbytery  of  Westchester. 

changes  might  be  necessary  for  purposes  of  adaptation, 
and  directed  them  to  conform*  their  revision  of  the  Book  of 
Discipline  to  the  present  Form  of  Government.  The  Assem- 
bly of  1882  ordered  that  the  revised  Book  of  Discipline  as 
thus  amended  be  printed  for  the  examination  of  Presbyte- 
ries. 

The  next  Assembly  sent  it  down  for  adoption  or  rejec- 
tion, with  permission  to  vote  for  it  as  a  whole  with  exception 
to  any  of  its  sections.  Amendment  was  also  proposed 
to  the  Directory  for  Worship,  Chap.  X,  to  adapt  it  to 
the  proposed  Revised  Book  of  Discipline.  April  17,  1884, 
the  Presbytery  of  Westchester  answered  the  overtures  in 
the  affirmative,  with  the  following  exceptions  to  the  Revised 
Book  of  Discipline : 

"  I.  In  chapter  IV,  sect.  26,  we  object  to  the  admission  of  legal  counsel 
in  the  trial  of  causes  unless  he  be  subject  to  the  jurisdiction  of  the  judicature. 

"II.  That  chapter  VIII,  sect.  65,  be  amended  by  omitting  the  words  re- 
quiring the  taking  of  all  testimony  to  be  '  subject  to  the  general  rules  of  evi- 
dence,' except  so  far  as  those  rules  are  embodied  in  chapter  VIII  '  On  Evi- 
dence.' "     [Records  of  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester,  vol.  II,  p.  255.] 

The  Revised  Book  of  Discipline  and  amendment  to  the 
Directory  for  Worship  were  adopted.  The  greatest  objec- 
tion was  made  to  Sees.  26  and  65,  though  others  were 
named.  It  was  ordered  that  overtures  be  sent  down  propos- 
ing amendments  to  Sees.  5,  18,  84,  and  115,  the  substitution 
of  Sec.  21,  Chap.  IV  of  the  old  Book  of  Discipline  for  Sec. 
26,  Chap.  IV  of  the  new,  and  the  omission  of  Sees.  48  and 
65.  Action  upon  them  was  taken  by  Presbytery  January  20 
and  April  22,  1885.  The  amendment  to  Sec.  5  was  rejected, 
the  other  overtures  were  answered  in  the  affirmative.  The 
proposed  changes  were  all  adopted  with  the  single  exception 
of  that  relating  to  Sec.  48. 

"The  practice  of  appointing  Judicial  Commissions  by 
the  General  Assembly  of  the  IVesbyterian  Church  is  an  in- 
heritance from  the  Church  of  Scotland  ;  and,  although  the 
power  to  appoint  such  commissions  was  not  embodied  in  our 
constitution,  yet  the  practice  has  continued  by  the  consent 
of  parties,  in  the  absence  of  constitutional  authority.     At 


CHANGES    IN    THE    CONSTITUTION.  I9I 

different  periods  of  the  church's  history,  attempts  have  been 
made  to  give  constitutional  authority  to  this  principle,  which 
has  been  found  so  useful  in  trial  of  judicial  cases,  but  with- 
out success."  The  special  committee,  from  whose  report 
the  abo\e  quotation  is  made,  reported  two  overtures  to  the 
Assembly  of  1884,  proposing  an  addition  to  the  Hook  of 
Discipline  and  amendments  to  the  Form  of  Goxernment, 
Chap.  XI,  Sec.  4,  and  Chap.  XII,  Sec.  4,  permitting  the  ap- 
pointment of  Judicial  Commissions  by  the  General  Assem- 
bly and  Synods  for  the  trial  of  judicial  cases  under  certain 
restrictions. 

The  overtures  were  answered,  April  22,  .1885,  by  the 
Presbytery  of  Westchester  in  the  affirmative.  On  the  same 
day  they  ordered  to  be  sent  to  the  Assembly  an  overture 
proposing  an  amendment  granting  the  same  power  to  Pres- 
bytery and  authorizing  Judicial  Commissions  to  meet  at 
such  times  and  places  as  they  or  the  court  appointing  them 
may  deem  best.  The  Presbyteries  by  a  large  majt)rity  rati- 
fied the  proposed  changes.  No  action  was  taken  by  the  As- 
sembly on  the  o\ertures  from  this  body. 

The  (icneral  Assembly  of  1885  proposed  a  new  chapter 
for  the  Directory  for  Worship  to  be  entitled  "Of  the 
Worship  of  God  by  Offerings."  Westchester  voted,  April 
22,  1886,  no,  but  the  majority  of  the  Presbyteries  voted 
aye.  The  overture  on  term  service  of  elders,  P'orm  of 
Government,  Chap.  XIII,  Sec.  8,  sent  d(jwn  in  1874, 
received  the  constitutional  majority,  though  Westchester 
voted,  October  7,  1874,  against  it.  A  similar  amendment  to 
Form  of  Government,  Chaj).  XIII,  Sec.  8,  with  res})ect 
to  deacons,  i^roposed  in  1885,  was  also  ratified.  Westchester 
again  e.xpressed  its  disai:)pi-o\al  (Ai)ril  22,  1886).  The  o\er- 
ture  on  Limitations  of  Marriage,  Confession  of  Faith, 
Chap.  XXIV,  Sec.  4,  of  1886,  became  a  jiart  of  the 
constitution.  The  vote  of  this  Presbytery  was  cast  April 
19,  1887,  with  the  majority.  The  Elder-Moderatorship  over- 
ture, as  it  was  called,  sent  down  the  same  year,  was  defeated. 

25 


192  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    WESTCHESTER. 

The  vote  of  Westchester  stood  —  Ayes  13,  Noes  12  (January 
18,  1887). 

At  the  first  stated  meeting  after  the  death  of  President 
Garfield,  October  5,  1881,  the  following  resolutions  were 
adopted  : 

"  Whereas,  in  the  Providence  of  God,  the  nation  has  been  sorely  smit- 
ten in  the  death  of  our  beloved  and  lamented  President,  Hon.  James  A.  Gar- 
field, therefore, 

"  Resolved,  i,  That  we,  the  members  of  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester, 
desire  to  put  on  record  our  sense  of  heartfelt  affliction  and  personal  loss  in 
connection  with  this  inscrutable  dispensation  which  has  clothed  the  land  in 
mourning,  and  shocked  and  grieved  the  nations  of  the  world. 

"  Resolved,  2,  That  in  the  noble  and  manly  character,  the  honorable  and 
splendid  achievements,  and  above  all,  in  the  distinctively  Christian  principles 
and  virtues  of  our  late  President,  we  recognize  in  him,  as  scholar,  statesman, 
and  Christian  one  peculiarly  fitted  for  the  high  and  honorable  position  and 
grave  responsibilities  of  the  office  of  Chief  Magistrate  of  this  great  nation, 
and  while  we  bow  in  humble  submission  to  the  .will  of  God,  yet  in  our  sorrow 
we  gratefully  cherish  the  memory  and  earnestly  commend  the  example  and 
career,  the  character  and  principles  of  our  late  President  to  the  youth  of  our 
land  as  eminently  worthy  of  study  and  imitation. 

"  Resolved,  3,  Deeply  and  most  heartily  sympathizing  with  the  immediate 
family  of  our  President,  we  commend  them  in  our  prayers  to  Him  whose  grace 
is  sufficient  to  sustain,  and  whose  love  and  favored  support  and  guidance  we 
earnestly  supplicate  in  their  behalf. 

"  Resolved,  4,  That  these  resolutions  be  recorded  in  the  minutes  of  Pres- 
bytery, and  a  copy  of  them  forwarded  to  the  family  of  our  deceased  President." 
[Records  of  the  Pre'sbytery  of  Westchester,  vol.  H,  pp.  158-9.] 

September  24,  1873,  Presbytery  voted  to  print  abstracts 
of  its  minutes  under  the  direction  of  the  stated  clerk.  April 
21,  1887,  they  resolved  : 

"  I.  That  the  minutes  be  printed  in  full,  and  that  a  copy  be  sent  to  each 
minister  and  elder  under  the  care  of  the  Presbytery. 

"  2.  That  one  printed  copy,  duly  authenticated  by  the  signature  of  the  Sta- 
ted Clerk,  be  preserved  as  the  permanent  record  of  the  proceedings  of  the 
Presbytery. 

"  3.  That  such  copy  be  sent  to  the  higher  court  for  review."  [Records  of 
the  Presbytery  of  Westchester,  vol.  II,  p.  396.] 

This  record  was  sent  to  the  Synod  of  New  York,  October, 
1888,  for  revision  and  approval.  On  the  recommendation 
of  the  committee  to  which  it  had  been  referred  it  was  ap- 
proved.    Later,  at  the  same  meeting,  objection  was  made 


PRINTED    MINUTES.  IQS 

that  the  minutes  were  in  print.     Previous  action  was  recon- 
sidered and  the  following  minute  was  adopted  : 

"  Whereas,  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester  presented  its  minutes  in  a 
])rinted  form,  and  this  form  has  not  been  distinctively  authorized  by  the 
Assembly  in  the  case  of  Presbyteries;  and 

"Whereas,  the  Synod  approved  the  minutes  of  the  said  Presbytery;  and 

"Whereas,  doubts  were  expressed  by  a  considerable  minority,  as  to  the 
constitutional  right  of  Presbyteries  to  present  their  minutes  in  this  form ; 

"Therefore,  the  Synod  of  New  York  respectfully  overtures  the  General 
Assembly  to  make  a  definite  deliverance  as  to  whether  the  princii)le  established 
in  relation  to  the  records  of  Synods,  Minutes  of  1884,  page  79,  does  not  apply 
to  those  of  the  Presbyteries  also."  [Minutes  of  the  Synod  of  New  York,  1888, 
p.  44.] 

The  answer  of  the  General  Assembly  is  as  follows  : 

"  Your  Committee  reconnnend  an  answer  in  the  affirmative ;  and  to  say 
that  all  our  Church  courts  may  follow  the  same  rule,  only  observing  with  care : 

"  I.     That  the  minutes  be  fully  and  accurately  kept  and  recorded. 

"2.  That  they  be  preserved  in  volumes,  and  not  left  to  separate  pam- 
phlets, and  be  carefully  paged. 

"  3.     That  they  have  blanks  left  for  corrections  and  ajiproval. 

"4.  That  the  minutes  of  every  meeting  be  duly  authenticated  by  the  writ- 
ten name  of  the  Stated  Clerk,  or  some  other  officer  ajipointed  to  authenti- 
cate them."     [Minutes  of  G.  A.,  1889,  p.  loi.] 

An  act  of  incorporation  was  secured  from  the  Legisla- 
ture of  the  State  of  New  York  in  1872.     It  is  as  follows  : 

"  An  Act  to  incorporate  the  Trustees  of  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester. 

"Section  i.  The  Presbytery  of  Westchester,  in  connection  with  the  Gen- 
eral Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United  States  of  America, 
having  designated  from  its  membership  the  following  persons,  to  wit :  Charles 
W.  Baird,  Rollin  A.  Sawyer,  Nelson  Millard,  Anthony  R.  Macoubrey,  Alex- 
ander S.  Twombley,  Eliphalet  Wood,  Gilbert  B.  Sarles,  Joseph  Banks,  and 
Edward  Wells,  citizens  of  the  United  States,  to  be  Trustees  in  their  behalf,  the 
said  persons  and  their  successors  to  be  from  time  to  time  appointed  by  said 
Presbytery,  arc  hereby  created  a  body  politic  and  corporate  by  the  name  of  the 
Trustees  of  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester. 

"  Sec.  2.  The  said  corporation  shall,  in  law,  be  capable  of  taking  for 
religious  and  charitable  pur|)oses,  bv  gift,  devise,  be(|uest,  grant,  or  purchase, 
and  of  holding,  conveying,  and  otherwise  disposing  of  the  same,  from  time  to 
time,  all  real  and  personal  estate  now  held  for  the  benefit  of  said  Pres- 
bytery, or  which  hath  been,  or  may  hereafter,  for  the  i)urposes  of  said  Pres- 
bytery, and  in  the  protection  of  its  charitable  or  religious  purposes,  be  given, 
devised,  becjueathed,  or  granted  to  the  said  corporation  by  its  name,  or  to  the 
said  Presbytery,  or  for  charitable  and  religious  uses  thereof,  or  which  mav,  in 


194  THE    PRESBYTERY    OF    WESTCHESTER. 

any  manner,  have  accrued,  or  shall  accrue  from  the  interest,  income,  or  use  of 
such  real  and  personal  estate,  provided  that  the  yearly  income  received  from 
the  property  of  the  said  corporation  shall  not  exceed  ten  thousand  dollars 
($10,000). 

"  Sec.  3.  The  management  and  disposal  of  the  affairs  and  property  of  the 
said  corporation  shall  be  in  the  hands  of  the  said  Trustees,  and  their  suc- 
cessors in  office  from  time  to  time ;-  and  which  Trustees  shall  hold  their  offices 
at  the  pleasure  of  the  said  Presbytery,  and  all  vacancies  shall  be  filled  by  the 
said  Presbytery. 

"  Sec.  4.  The  said  corporation  shall  possess  the  general  powers,  rights, 
and  privileges,  and  be  subject  to  the  liabilities  and  provisions  contained  in  the 
1 8th  chapter  of  First  Part  of  the  Revised  Statutes,  so  far  as  the  same  are 
applicable,  and  also  subject  to  the  provisions  of  Chapter  360  of  the  Laws  of 
i860. 

"  Sec.  5.  This  act  shall  take  effect  immediately. 

"(Passed  May  11,  1872;  ch.  644,  Laws  of  State  of  New  York,  vol.  2, 
page  1528.)" 

Permanent    Officers. 

stated  clerks. 
Name.  Date  of  Appointment. 

1.  Rev.  Ezra  F.  Mundy,  October  4,  1870. 

2.  Rev.  Carson  W.  Adams,  January  18,  1881. 

3.  Rev.  William  J.  Gumming,        April  21,  1886. 


PERMANENT     CLERKS. 

1.  Rev.   George  W.  F.  Birch,  April  21,  1886. 

2.  Rev.   John  H.  Eastman,  January  17,  1888. 

TREASURERS. 

\.   Rev.  Ezra  F.  Mundy,  October  5,  1870. 

2.  Rev.  Carson  W.  Adams,  January  t8,  i88l 

3.  Rev.  George  W.  F.  Birch,  April  21,  1886. 

4.  Rev.  William  J.  Gumming,  January  17,  1888. 

HISTORIANS. 

1.  Rev.  Charles  W.  Baird, 

2,  Rev.  William  J.  Gumming,  April  21,  1887. 


PERMANENT    OFFICERS. 


195 


TRUSTEES. 


Date  of  Appointment. 


3 
4 

5 
6 

7 

8 

*9 

10. 

*i  I 

*  1 2 

*i3 

*i5 
*i6, 
*i7 

*ir 


Name. 
Rev.  Charles  W.  Baird,  May  r  i,  1872. 

Rev.  Rollin  A.  Sawyer, 
Rev.  Nelson  Millard, 
Rev.  Anthony  R.  Macoubrey, 
Rev.  Ale.xander  S.  Twombly, 
Elder  EHphalet  Wood, 
Elder  Gilbert  11  Sarles, 
Elder  Joseph  Banks, 
Elder  Edward  Wells, 

Rev.  Evert  Van  .Slyke,  April    17,  1873. 

Elder  Uriah  Hill, 
Rev.  Richard  P.  H.  Vail,       January  21,  1879. 
Rev.  Thornton  M.  Niven,     April  20,  1887. 
Rev.  Isaac  L.  Kip, 
Elder  William  H.  Parsons, 
Elder  Thomas  G.  Ritch. 
Elder  Benjamin  Weed, 
Rev.  John  E.  Bushnell,  January  15,  1889. 


The  salary  of  stated  clerk  was  fi.xed.  October  5,  1870,  at 
per  annum.  April  22,  1874,  it  was  made  ;^ioo.  April 
21,  1886,  a  change  was  made,  and  the  office  of  Permanent 
Clerk  created.  The  salary  of  the  Stated  Clerk  was  reduced 
to  $75,  and  that  of  the  Permanent  Clerk  fi.xed  at  $30. 


*  Present  incumbents. 


INDEX  OF   dates; 


1639,  Aug.  3.     First  purchase  of  land  in  Westchester  Co.,  N.  Y., 
1641.  :  Settlers  at  Tarrytown,  N.  Y.,  .  .  .  •    . 

1G49.     A  saw-mill  at  Yonkers,  N.  Y.,  .... 

1654,  Nov.  14.     Purchase  of  land  by  Thomas  Pell  at  Westchester,  N.  Y 

1655.  Town  of  Westchester  settled,  .  .  .  .         , 

1660.     Rye  settled,    ....... 

1664.     Eastchester,  N.  Y.,  settled,   ..... 

1664,  Sept.  8.     New  Amsterdam  surrendered  to  the  English. 

1665,  March.     Duke's  Laws  promulgated,  .... 
1674.     Church  erected  at  Westchester,  N.  Y., 

1680,  Dec.  23.     Purchase  of  land  at  Bedford,  N.  Y., 

1 68 1,  March.     Settlement  of  Bedford,  N.  Y.,  . 

1683,  Nov.  22.      Purchase  of  land  at  White  Plains,  N.  Y., 

16S3,  Nov.  24.     Boundary  line  between  New  York  and  Connecticut 

agreed  on,       ....... 

1686  or  7.     New  Rochelle,  N.  Y.,  settled  by  the  Huguenots, 

1693,  Sept.  19.     Passage  of  Act  for  settling  a  ministry,  etc., 

J  699.     Bill  passed  to  settle  ministry  by  majority  vote  of  parish,  . 

1702,  Nov.  19.     Rev.  John  Bartow  inducted  by  the  Governor  into  the 

parish  at  Westchester,  ..... 

1704,  April.     Rev.  John  Pritchard  inducted  into  the  parish  of  Rye, 

1705.  Resistance  to  the  rector  at  Bedford,  N.  Y., 
1705.     Rev.  John  Jones  leaves  Bedford,  N.  Y.,       . 
1 70S,  May  30.     Purchase  of  land  at  South  Salem,  N.  Y., 
1708.     Meeting  of  the  Synod  of  Saybrook  and  adoption  of  Saybrook 

Platform,         ....... 

1710.     Division  of  Huguenot  Church  at  New  Rochelle,  N.  Y.,  . 

1714,  May  22.     Letters  Patent  to  Ridgcfield  issued  by  (General  Court  of 

Connecticut,  ....... 

1718,  Nov.     Rev.  William  Tennent  settled  at  Eastchester,  N.  Y., 

1720,  March.     Unsuccessful  attempt  to  secure  incorporation  of  church 

at  New  York,  ...... 

1720,  May.     Rev.  William  Tennent  leaves  Eastchester  for  Bedford,  N.  Y. 
1720.     Bedford  Church  connected  with  the  Presbytery  of  Philadelphia 
1720.     White  Plains,  N.  Y.,  settled,  .... 

1727.     Church  erected  at  White  Plains,  N.  Y.,       ... 
1727.     Rev.  William  Tciment  leaves  Bedford, 


25 
25 
25 
26 


13 
24 


29 

27 
18 

5 
18 


*  Index  only  of  the  dates  of  events  of  historic  interest. 


198  INDEX    OF    DATES. 

Page. 

730.     Coitlandt  Manor  (Yorktown),  N.  Y.,  settled,  .  '  .  .  2 

730.  Philipse  Patent  (South  East),  N.  Y.,  settled,  ...  3 

731.  Survey  of   l:)oundary  line  completed  ;  the  "  Oblong  "  laid  out,      .  3 

732.  Bedford  Chuich  connected  with  the  Presbytery  of  New  York,     .         iS 
735.     Log  church  at  South  East,  N.  Y.,    .  .  .  .  .6 

73S.     Church  building  at  Crompond  (Yorktown),  N.  Y.,  .  .  5 

740.     Carmel,  N.  Y.,  settled,  ......  3 

740.     Rev.  Elisha  Kent,  pastor  of  the  First  Church  of  Philipse  Patent 

(South  East),  N.  Y., iS 

742.     Rev.  Samuel  Sacket  comes  to  Cortlandt  Manor,  N.  Y.,  as  a  home 

missionary,      .  .  .  .  .  •  ■         55 

742,  Dec.  30.      Rev.    John  Smith   installed  pastor  of  Rye  and    White 

Plains,  ........         54 

743.  Pound  Ridge,  N.  Y.,  settled,  .  ....  3 
743,  Oct.  12.     Rev.  Samuel   Sacket   installed  as  pastor  of  the  churches 

of  Bedford  and  Crompond,  .  .  .  .  .18 

743.     Bedford  and  Crompond  churches  connected  with  the  Presbytery 

of  New  Brunswick,    .......         18 

745.     Patterson,  N.  Y.,  settled,       ......  3 

749,  June  15.     Rev.  Samuel  Sacket  released  from  Crompond  Church,         55 

751.  Bedford  Church  connected  with  Presbytery  of  Suffolk,     .  .  18 

752.  Rev.  T'lnies  Davenport  at  West  Philippi  (Carmel),  N.  Y.,  .  19 
752,  May  20.  Church  at  Salem  (South  Salem),  N.  Y.,  organized,  .  19 
752,  May  20.     Rev.    Solomon    Mead     installed    pastor    of    the    Salem 

Church,  ........         56 

752,  May  24.     Salem  Church  votes  to  connect  itself  with  Fairfield  West 

Consociation,  .......  18 

752.  Rye  and  White  Plains  Churches   connected  with    Presbytery  of 

New  York,      .       '      .  .  .  .  .  .18 

753'  -^pril  4.     Rev.  Samuel  Sacket  released  from  Bedford,         .  .         56 

753,  Ainil.     Rev.    Samuel    Sacket  becomes   pastor   of  the   Crompond 

Church,  ........         18 

753.     Crompond  Church  connected  with  the  Presbytery  of  Suffolk,  18 

756,  Feb.  17.     Rev.    Ebenezer    Knibloe   installed    at    West    PhilijJiji 

(Gilead),  N.  Y.,  .  .  .  .  .  .  -19 

758,  Mar.  29.     Rev.  Joseph    Peck  becomes  pastor  of  Philipse   Patent 

(Patterson,  N.  Y.,)  Second  Church,  .  .  .  .19 

759,  Aug.  29.     Rev.  Ebenezer  Knibloe  released  from  West  Philippi,     .  19 

760,  Rev.  Elnathan  Gregory  at  West  Philippi,  N.  Y.,    .  .  .         19 

762,  Oct.  27.     Presbytery    of    Dutchess    County    organized    by    Rev. 

Messrs.  Elisha  Kent,  Joseph  Peck,  and  Solomon  Mead,  .  .         31 

765,  May  28.     Application  by  Presbytery  of "  Dutchess  County  to  Synod 

of  New  York  and  Piiiladelphia  for  recognition,     .  .  .32 

763,  June  28.     Rev.  Messrs.  Samuel  Sacket,  John  Smith,  Eliphalet  Ball, 

and  Chaunccy  Graham,  join  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County,       .         32 
763,  Aug.  I.     Pastors   and    churches    of    Phili])pi    anil    West    Philipjji 

ruled  out  of  Fairfield  East  Consociation,  .  .  .  .17 


INDEX    OF    DATES. 


199 


1763,  Sept.  29.  Salem  Church  adopts  the  Presbyterian  form  of  church 
government  and  elects  elders,  ..... 

1763,  Oct.  18.  Po'keepsie  (N.  Y.)  Church  connected  with  Presbytery  of 
Dutchess  County,       ....... 

1765,  Sept.  9.     Church  of  Albany,  N.  Y.,  enrolled, 

1766,  May.     Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County  recognized  by  the  Synod  of 

New  York  and  Philadelphia,  ..... 

1767,  Oct.  14.     Secession  from  Presbytery  of   Dutchess  County  of  Rev. 

Samuel  Sacket  and  Crompond  Church,      .... 

1768,  Church  built  at  Mt.  Pleasant  (Sing  Sing),  N.  Y.,    . 

1769,  Feb.  8.     Rev.    Joseph    Peck    released   from    Second    Church  of 

Philipse  Patent  (Patterson),  N.  Y.,  . 
1769,  April  8.     A   bill    introduced   into   the    General   Assembly  of  the 
Province  of  New  York  to  relieve  Protestants   in    Westchester 
and  other  counties  from  ta.\ation  for  support  of  ministers  of  the 
Church  of  England,  ....... 

1769,  Oct.  12.     Rev.    Ichabod    Lewis  ordained   and  installed  over   the 

churches  of  White  Plains  and  Mt.  Pleasant, 

1770.  Church  organized  at  Pound  Ridge,  N.  Y.,  .... 

1770.  Church  organized  at  Pleasant  Valley,  Dutchess  County,  N.  Y.,  . 

1 77 1,  Feb.  26.     Death  of  Rev.  John  Smith,  .... 
1775,  May  23.     Rev.  Samuel  Sacket  transferred  by  the  Synod  back  to 

the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County,  .... 

1775,  May  23.     Albany  Church  transferred  by  Synod  to  the  Presbytery 

of  New  York,  ....... 

1776,  July  17.     Death  of  Elisha  Kent,         ..... 
1776,  Oct.     British  army  invades  Westchester  County,     . 

1776,  Nov.  4.     Church  at  White  Plains  burned  by  American  soldiers,     . 

1777,  June  iS,  Rev.  Ichabod  Lewis  installed  at  Philippi,  . 

1779,  June  24.     Crompond  Church  burned  by  British  soldiers,     . 

1779,  July  2.     Churches  at  Bedford  and  Pound  Ridge  burned  by  British 

troops,  ........ 

1779,  Aug.  25.     Church  at  l^i^per  Salem  organized  as  a  Congregational 

Church,  ..»••••• 

1779,  Oct.  iS.     Rev.  Messrs.  Jacob  Green  and  Joseph  Grover  of  Han- 

over and  Parsippany  Churches  in  New  Jersey  withdraw  from  the 
Presbytery  of  New  York,     ...... 

1780,  May  3.     Rev.   Amzi  Lewis  of  Florida,  N.  Y.,  and  Rev.  Ebenezer 

Bradford  of  Succasunna.  N.  J.,   withdraw  from    Presbytery  of 

New  York 

1780,  May  3.     Morris  County    Presbytery  organized   by    Rev.   Messrs 
Green,  Grover,  Lewis,  and  Bradford, 

1783.  Church  at  Bedford  rebuilt,     . 

1784,  June  5.     Rev.  Samuel  Sacket  dies, 
1784.     Church  built  at  Red  Mills,  N.  Y.,    . 

1784.  Destructive  visitation  of  insects, 

1785.  Church  at  Crompond  rebuilt, 

26 


Page. 
16 

34 
35 


36 

5 


19 


34 

35 
35 
55 

36 

38 

53 
42 
44 
44 
45 

45 


58 


59 

59 
46 

56 

8 

46 

4^ 


200  INDEX    OF    DATES. 


Pasre. 


1785.  Nov.     Rev.  Silas  Constant  becomes  stated  supply  of  Crompond, 

N.  Y.,  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .60 

1786,  Mav  18.     Rev.    Silas   Constant    enrolled   as  advisoiy  member  by 

Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County,       .  ...         93 

17S6,  Sept.  4.     Philippi  Church  adopts  Presbyterian  standards  and  gov- 
ernment, with  the  exception  of  the  eldership,  .  .  .38 

1786.  Church  at  Pound  Ridge  rebuilt,        .  .  .  .  .46 

1787.  Rev.  Amzi  Lewis  at  North  Salem,  .   •         .  .  .  .62 

1788.  Congregational  Church  organized  at  Greenburgh,  N.  Y.,  .  .  8 
1790.  Cherry  Valley  Church  transferred  to  the  Presbytery  of  Albany,  .  38 
1790,  Sept.  12.  Church  organized  at  Red  Mills,  N.  Y.,  ...  8 
1792,  Jan.  3.     Associated  Westchester  Presbytery  organized,       .              .         63 

1792.  New  church  for  West  Philippi  congregation  erected  at  Gilead,     .         70 

1793,  Nov.  12.  •  Northern  Associated  Presbytery  organized,        .  .86' 

1793,  Church   at  Rye  rebuilt,         ....  .  .         46 

1794,  May  8.     Rev.  Silas   Constant  withdraws   from  the    Presbytery  of 

Dutchess  County,       .......         93 

1795,  Oct.  22.     Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County  dissolved  and  Presbytery 

of  Hudson  erected,    .......         52 

1797.     Church  buildhig  erected  at  Peekskill,  N.  Y.,  ...  8 

1799.  Church  erected  at  Somers,  N.  Y.,     .....  8 

1800,  Sept.  4.  Rev.  Solomon  Mead  released  from  the  Salem  Church,  .  34 
1804.  Elders  first  elected  in  the  Franklin  (Patterson,  N.  Y.)  Church,  38 
1806,  March  4.     Division  of  Yorktown  Church,     .             .             .             -73 

1806,  June  u.     Yorktown  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  Hud- 

son,    .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  -75 

1807,  Feb.  3.  Saratoga  Associated  Presbytery  organized,  .  .  86 
1809,  April  22.     Union  Church  (South  East)  dismissed  to  Fairfield  East 

Consociation,  .......         96 

1809,  Oct.  5.     Presbytery  of  New  York  reorganized,         .  .  .96 

181 1,  Aug.  2.     Mt.  Pleasant  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  New 

York,  ........         91 

181 2,  Mar.  30.     New  Rochelle  (N.  Y.)  Church  organized,  .  .         96 

1815.  Church  built  at  West  Farms,  N.  Y.,  .  .  .  -96 
i8i6.  May.     Independent    Presbyterian    Church    at   Peekskill,    N.    Y., 

organized,       ........         79 

1816,  Dec.  4.     Church  organized  at  West  Farms,  .  .  -97 

1819,  Oct.  23.     Presbytery  of  North  River  erected,  .  .  .98 

1820,  Oct.  5.  %Mt.  Pleasant   Church   returns   to   the   Associated    West- 

chester Presbytery,    .......         91 

1822,  Sep.  17.     Pound  Ridge  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  North 

River,  ........        99 

1823,  Woman's  Missionary  Society  organized  in  the  liedford  Church,       186 

1824,  Sep.  23.     Application  of  North  Salem  Church  to  the  Presbytery 

of  North  River  to  be  reorganized  as  a  Presbyterian  Church,     .        99 
1824,  April  25.     A  church  organized  at  White  Plains,  N.  Y.,       .  .         98 


INDEX    or    DATES. 


201 


Page. 

1524,  Oct.  21.     White  Plains  Church  enrolled  In-  the  Presbytery  of  New 

York,  ........         98 

1825,  April  II.     South  Greenburgh  Church  organized,     .  >.  .98 

1825,  April  22.     South  Greenburgh  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery 

of  New  York, 98 

1825,  April  26.     South  East  Church  received  by  the  Presbytery  of  North 

River,  ........         99 

1525,  June  18.     Church  at  Grcenl)urgh  reorganized,  .  .  .98 

1825,  Oct.  II.     Greenburgh  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  New 

York, 9S 

1826,  June  25.  A  church  organized  at  Peekskill,  N.  Y.,  .  .  -79 
1826,  June  2£.     Church  at  Peekskill  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  New 

York, 98 

1526,  Oct.  10.     Mt.  Pleasant  Church  returns  to  the  Presbytery  of  New 

York,  ........         91 

1527,  Nov.  28.  First  Bench  of  elders  elected  by  the  South  East  Church,  16 
1829,  Mar.  4.  Rye  Church  reorganized,  .  .  .  .  .97 
1829,  April  21.  Rye  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  New  York,  98 
1829,  Oct.  22.  Presbytery  of  Bedford  erected,  .  .  .  .102 
1S30,  June  2.     Associated  Westchester  Presbytery  dissolved,      .  .         92 

1 83 1,  April  19.     South  Salem  received  by  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  .       109 

1832,  Mav    2.     North    Salem    Church    reorganized   as    a    Presbyterian 

Church,  .  .  .  .  .  .  .'109 

1832,  Oct.     Peekskill  Church  transferred  by  Synod  to  the  Presbytery  of 

New  York,     .  .  .  .  .111 

1833,  May  2.     Somers  Church  reorganized  as  a  Presbyterian  Church,     .       110 

1833,  Oct.  I.     Somers  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,     .       108 

1834,  May  28.     Woman's   Missionary  Society  organized   in  the    South 

Salem  Church,  .......       186 

1835,  June  16.  Gilead  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  .  no 
1835,  Oct.     West  Farms  Church  transferred  by  Synod  to  the  Second 

Presbytery  of  New  York,      .  .  .  .  .  .111 

1837,  ^[ay.     Plan  of  Union  abrogated,  and  the  Synods  of  the  Western 

Reserve,  Utica,  Geneva,  and  Genesee  exscinded,   .  .  .       135 

1838,  May  18.     Division  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  into  Old  and  New 

School  Branches,       .  .  .  -  .  .  -1.35 

1838.     Division  of  the  Church  at  Somers,  ....       137 

1838,  Oct.  17.     Peekskill  Church  transferred  to  Second  Presbytery  of 

New  York,       .  .  .  .  .  .  .111 

1839,  April  3.     Somers   Church  received   by   the  Third  Presbytery  of 

New  York,      .  .  .  .  .138 

1839,  July  5.     Church  organized  at  Thompsonville,  Conn.,  .  .143 

1839,  July  9.     Thompsonville  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  New 

York,   .........       143 

1841,  Nov.  17.     Peekskill  Second  Church  organized,         .  .  .       176 

1845,  April  15.     Church  at  Tariffville,  Conn.,  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery 

of  New  York,  .  •  .  .  .  .       144 


202 


INDEX    OF    DATES. 


1846,  Jan.  20.     Croton  Falls  Church  incorporated, 

1847.  Church  edifice  erected,  ..... 
1849  or  '50.     Greenburgh  Church  joins  the  Classis  of  New  York, 

1849,  Oct.     Mt.  Pleasant  Church  transferred  from  Presbytery  of  Bed 

ford  to  Second  Presbytery  of  New  Yori<,   . 

1850,  Jan.  16.     First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Morrisania  organized, 
1S50,  Oct.  15.     Presbytery  of  Connecticut  erected, 

1851,  Nov.  4.     First    Presbyterian  Church  of  Hartford  organized  and 

enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut, 

1852,  April  26.     First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Yonkers,  N.  Y.,  organ 

ized,     ........ 

1852,  May  10.  First  Church  of  Yonkers  enrolled  by  the  Third  Pres- 
bytery of  New  York,  ..... 

1852,  June  15.  Church  at  Mt.  Kisco,  N.  Y.,  organized  by  the  Presbytery 
of  Bedford,    ....... 

1852,  Aug.  9.     Church  at  Portchester,  N.  Y.,  organized  and  enrolled  b\ 

the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  ..... 

1853,  Feb.  25.     First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Stamford,  Conn.,  organ 

ized,    ........ 

1853,  Mar.  I.     Stamford  First  Church  enrolled  by  the  Third  Presbytery 

of  New  York. 
1853,  June  14.     South  East  Center  Church  organized  by  a  committee  of 

the  Presbytery  of  Bedford,  ..... 
1853,  Oct.  16.     The   First  Presbyterian  Church  of    Bridgeport,  Conn. 

organized,       ....... 

1853,  Oct.  31.     Bridgeport  First  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of 

New  York,     ....... 

1854,  Jan.  15.     Second  Presbyterian  Church  of  Greenburgh  (Irvington 

N.  Y.,  organized,       ...... 

1854,  Jan.  23.     Greenburgh  Second  Church  enrolled  by  the  Third  Pres 

bytery  of  New  York. 
181:4,  Nov.  8.     Union  Presbyterian  Church  of  Upper  Morrisania  (Tre 
mont),  N.  Y.,  enrolled  by  the  Third  Presbytery  of  New  York, 

1855,  July  8.     Throgg's  Neck  Church  organized,  . 

1855,  Oct.  9.     Throgg's    Neck  Church    enrolled  by  the    Presbytery  of 

New  York,     ....... 

1S56,  July  27.     Presbyterian  Church  of  Deep  River,  Conn.,  organized 

1856,  Oct.  8.     Deep  River  Church  enrolled  by  Presbytery  of  Connect! 

cut,      ........ 

1857,  May  25.     The  First  Presbyterian  Church   of  Morrisania  reorgan 

ized  by  the  Presbytery  of  New  York, 

1857,  Oct.  27.     Scotch  Presbyterian  Church  of  Providence,  R.  I.,  organ 

ized  and  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  Connecticut. 
185S,  Feb    3.      Westminster  Church  of  Yonkers,  N.  Y.,  organized, 

1858,  Feb.  15.     Westminster  Church  enrolled  by  the  Third  Presbytery 

of  New  York. 


Page. 


INDKX    OF    DATES.  203 

iS6o,  Oct.  i8.  Rye,  Port  Chester,  South  East,  and  South  East  Center 
Churches,  with  their  pastors,  and  the  Bridgep(jrt  First  Church 
and  its  pastor,  transferred  from  the  Preshyterics  of  Bedford  and 
New  York  to  that  of  Connecticut,  .  .  .  .150 

1862,  Oct.  23.     Presbytery  of  Bedford  consolidated  with  the  Presbytery 

of  Connecticut,  .  .  .  .  .  .  .151 

1862,  Oct.  23.     South  Greenburgh   Church  transferred  from  Presbytery 

of  P>edford  to  the  Second  Presbytery  of  New  York,  .  .141 

1863,  Apr.  6.     Westminster  Church  withdrew  from  the  Third  PresljAtery 

of  New  York  to  the  Second,  .....       177 

1863,  Oct.  4.     Riverdale  Church  organized,  .  .  .177 

1863,  Oct.  12.     Riverdale  Church  enrolled  by  the    Fourth  Presbytery  of 

New  York,      ........       177 

1863,  Nov.  4.     Darien  Church  organized  and  enrolled  by   the  Fourth 

Presbytery  of  New  York,     .  .  .  .  .  .178 

1865,  Aug.     German   Church   of    Bridgeport,  Conn.,  organized  by  the 

Presbytery  of  Connecticut,  .  .  .  .  .  .152 

1 866,  Mar.  8.     First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Morrisania  reorganized,     .       178 
1866,  Apr.  2.     First  Church  of  Morrisania  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of 

New  York,     ........       178 

1869,  Oct.  6.     German  Church  of  Bridgeport,  Conn.,  disbanded,  .       152 

1869,  Nov.  12.     Reunion  of  the  Old  and  New  School  Branches  of  the 

Presbyterian  Church,             .....  .  160 

1870,  June  21.     Presbytery  of  Westchester  erected,                        .  .  164 

1871,  Oct.  17.     Deep  River  (Conn.)  Church  dissolved,      .  .  182 

1872,  Nov.  17.     Katonah  (N.  Y.)  Church  organized,           .             .  .  180 

1873,  Feb.  24.     South  Reformed  Church  of  New  Haven,  Conn  ,  recog- 

nized by  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester  as  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church  of  New  Haven,         .  .  .  .  .  .181 

1873,  April  16.  Katonah  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  West- 
chester, .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .176 

1873,  May  12.  First  Presbyterian  Church  of  North  New  York  organi- 
zed,     .........       iSo 

'873,  June  10.     North  New  York  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbyiery  of 

Westchester,  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .176 

1875,  Mar.  I.     First   Presbyterian   Church    of  New    Haven,   Conn.,  dis- 

solved, ........       iSi 

1876,  Oct.  8.     Huguenot  Memorial  Church,  Pelham  ^^anor,  N.  Y.,  or- 

ganized, ........       180 

1876,  Oct.  18.     Huguenot  Memorial  Church  enrolled  by  the   Presbytery 

of  Westchester,  .  .  .  .  .  .  .176 

1879,  April  21.     Dayspring  Church  of  Yonkers,  N.  Y  ,  organized,  180 

1879,  April  30.     Dayspring  Church  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  West- 
chester, .  .  .  .  .  .  .176 

18S0,  Jan.  19.     Pleasantville  (N.  Y.)  Church  organized,    .  .       iSo 

18S0,  Jan.  20.      Pleasantville    Church    enrolled    bv    the    Presbv  tery    of 

Westchester,  .  .  .176 


204 


INDEX    OF    DATES. 


Page. 

1880,  Oct.  I.     Piesbyterial  Woman's  Missionary  Society  organized,        .       186 
iSSo,  Oct.  6.     Cliurch  at  Somers,  N.  Y.,  dissolved,  .  .  .       183 

1881,  Jan.     Services  begun  at  Brewster's  Station, 
1881,  April  26.     First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Greenwich,  Conn.,  organ 

ized,     ........ 

iSSi,  June  21.     Greenwich  Church  enrolled  bv  the  Presbytery  of  West 

Chester,  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .176 

1886,  Feb.  19.     First  Presbyterian  Church  of  New  Haven,  Conn.,  organ 

ized,     .........       180 

1S86,  April  20.     New    Haven    Church    enrolled    by    the   Presbytery    of 

Westchester,  .  .  .  .  .  .  .       176 

18S7,  June  23.     First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Mt.  Vernon,  N.  Y.,  organ 

ized  and  enrolled  by  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester,         .  .       180 

1887,  Oct.  19.     The  Bethany,  West  Farms,    Pott's   Memorial,  Tremont, 

and   Riverdale  Churches,  with   their   pastors,   transferred  to  the 
Presbytery  of  New  York,     ......       183 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


Abbott,  Rev.  Gorham  D., 
Abercrombie,  Colonel,     . 
^Abstracts  of  Minutes, 
''  Act  and  Testimony," 
"  Act  for  settling  a  Ministry,"  etc., 
Adam,  Rev.  Matthew  T., 
Adams,  Rev.  Carson  W.,  141,  i 

Albany  Church,     . 
Albany,  N.  Y.,       . 
Albany,  Presbytery  of, 
Allen,  Rev.  Edward  U.,     . 
Allen,  Rev.  John  S., 
Allerton,  Rev.  Isaac, 
Allison,  Rev.  Charles  E., 
Ambler,  Abraham, 
Amenia  (N.  Y.)  Union  Church,  . 
American  Board  of  Commissioners  for 
American  Education  Society, 
American  Home  Missionary  Society, 
Anderson,  Elder  James,    . 
Anderson,  Licentiate  James  M.,  . 
Armstrong,  Rev.  Robert  G., 
Assessments, 
Associated  Presbyteries,  . 
Associated  Presbytery  of  Morris  Couni 
Associated  Westchester  Presbytery, 


Bailey,  Rev.  Samuel, 
Piailey,  Rev.  Winthrop,    . 
Baird,  Rev.  Charles  W.,  . 
Baird,  Rev.  Henry  M.,     . 
Baird,  Rev.  Isaac, 
Baird,  Rev.  James, 
Baldwin,  Rev.  Charles  H., 
Baldwin,  Rev.  Elihu, 
Baldwin,  Rev.  Henry, 
Baldwin,   Rev.  Methuselah, 
Ball,  Rev.  Eliphalet, 
Ball,  Rev.  Hosea, 


44,  "45 


Forcig 


145 


146,  I 


Mi 


0,158, 


Page. 
107.   13S,  139 

45 

192 

131,  132,  134 

23,  24,  27,  2S 

ro4,  105,  175 

17'.  '75'  193 

.,,    ,^   ,_    ,0 
jj'  j>  j/>  j° 

86 

39.  95 

166,  174 

168,  172,  175 

66,  67,  91 

167,  169,  176 

6,  10 

65,  68,  91,  99 

119 

"9.  '35 

"9.  '35 

1 58 

147 

98,  100 

122 

87 

59 

39.  58-94 


104,  loS,  1 14,  144,  146, 
146,  158,  163,  165,  169,  173, 

166,  169, 
145,  146,  165, 


35^  35.  36.  40,  52,  73, 

'8,  32.  33'  34.  36 

66,  68,  82,  91,  92, 


146 
150 

194 
166 
170 
172 
>73 
79 
18 

.77 
-  37 
106 


2o6 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Barfield,  Rev.  Abraham, 

Page. 

35 

Barnes'  Notes  on  Romans, 

133 

Barnes,  Rev.  Albert, 

128, 132, 133 

Barnet,  Rev.  John, 
Barniim,  Rev.  F'rederick  S., 

•     65, 76 

166,  175 

Barret,  Rev.  Gerrish, 

144 

Barr,  Rev.  James, 

65, 82 

Bartlett,  Rev.  Dwight  R., 

174 

Bartow,  Rev.  John, 

25 

Baskerville,  Rev.  Henry  C, 

168 

Beadle,  Rev.  E.  R., 

'45, 

Beardsley,  Rev.  Broman  B., 

106 

Beattie,  Rev.  James, 

175 

Bedford,  N.  Y.,  . 

Bedford  (N.  Y.)  Church,         6, 

7,  lo,  i6,  17,  I 

S.  24,  2 

,  5.  6,  23,  25,  26,  27,  36,  96 
7,  33,  34>  37,  38,  39,  45,  46, 

S 
Bedford,  Presbytery  of. 

2,  68,  69,  95,  99,  100, 
115,  122, 

01,  102,  103,  104,  105,  109, 

145,  146,  151,  165,  167,  171 

95,  102-142,  151 

Bellamy,  Rev.  Joseph,  . 
Benedict,  Rev.  Abner,   . 

14 
63,  64,  65,  68 

Benedict,  Rev.  Amzi,     . 

67 

Benedict,  Rev.  Epenetus  P., 
Benedict,  Rev.  Henry,   . 

lOI, 

102,  10 

3,  105, 
68, 

113,  I '4,  135,  145,  146,  158 
104,  108,  114,  144,  146,  150 

Benedict,  Rev;  Joel, 

35 

Benevolence, 

82,  1 19-123,  1S5 

Berkshire,  Association  of, 
Bethany  Church, 

85 
.    166,  167,  176,  180 

Bethlehem,  N.  Y., 

74 

Bible  Cause, 

122 

Bible  Society,     .         •   . 
Biographical  Sketches, 
Birch,  Rev.  George  W.  F., 
Bittingcr,  Rev.  Edmund  C, 
Blackford,  Rev.  Robert  A., 

120 

53-57,  9^-94 

167,  176,  194 

106 

166,  171 

Blain,  Rev.  William,      . 
Blair,  Rev.  Allan, 

68 
65,  67,  68,  69,  82,  91 

Blatchford,  Rev.  Samuel, 

34,  35 

Blindbur,  Rev.  John, 

35 

Blydenburgh,  Rev.  John, 
Bonar,  Rev.  James  B., 

35 
166 

Bond,  Rev.  Daniel, 

173 

"D       \   t-  t       li       ^^i■\  1? 

-' 

24 
174 

rsoiiciet  (or  rsoucietj  i\cv.    ■  ■ 
Booth,  Rev.  Robert  R., 

Botsford,  Rev.  Alfred  P., 

107 

Boundary  settled, 
Bourne,  Rev.  George,  . 

13 

66,  80,  91,  100 

Bouton,  Elder  Edwin,  . 

156 

GENERAL    INDEX. 


207 


Bouton,  Rev.  Enoch,    . 

66,82 

Bowen,  Rev.  Marcellus, 

16S 

Bowers,  Rev.  Nathaniel, 

18 

Bowman,  Rev.  George  A., 

166 

Boyd,  Rev.  John, 

68 

Boynton,  Rev.  George  M., 

165. 173 

Bradford,  Rev.  Ebene/.er, 

59 

Bradner,  Rev.  Benoni, 

86 

JJradiier,  Rev.  Thomas  Scott, 

104,  108,  145,  151 

Brewster,  Elder  Samuel, 

125 

Brewster's  Station,  N.  Y., 

114,  151,  i8i,  182 

Bridge,  Rev.  Christopher, 

27 

"  Brief  Account  of  the  Associated  P 

resbyteries,"  etc ,          .             .                   87 

Bridgeport  (Conn.)  First  Church, 

144,  145,  146,  149,  150,  165,  167,  171 

Bridgejjort  (Conn.)  German  Church, 

146,152 

Bristol,  Rev.  Cyrus  B., 

102,  103,  108,  109 

British  Army,  . 

42 

Bromfield,  Rev.  Edward  T.,    . 

167,  168 

Bronson,  Rev.  Asahel, 

.     67,  68,  loi 

Brookfield  (Conn.)  Church,     . 

65,  69 

Brooklyn,  N.  Y., 

66 

lirown,  Nathaniel, 

79 

Brown,  Rev.  C"hristo[)her  R., 

168 

Brown,  Rev.  Daniel,    . 

173 

Brown,  Rev.  William  Y., 

168,  173 

Bryan,  Rev.  Edward  D., 

'03 

107,  113,  II},  144,  146,  150 

Buchanan,  Rev.  J.  M., 

174 

Buckingham,  Rev.  Ste])hen,    . 

18 

Bull,  Rev.  William,     . 

68 

Bullions,  Rev.  Alexander  B., 

108,  166 

Burbank,  Rev.  Jacob, 

99 

Burghardt,  Rev.  P.  H., 

174 

Burkhalter,  Rev.  Edward  R., 

.  166,  169,  172 

Burnet,  Rev.  Eliezur,  . 

7Z,  74 

Burr,  Rev.  Charles  H.,  Jr.,     . 

166,  169,  173 

lUirr,  Rev.  Marcus, 

168 

Burritt,  Rev.  Blackleach, 

?,z,  35. 45. 46, 52 

Butler,  Rev.  Charles  F., 

99,  loi,  102,  103,  105 

Butts,  Rev.  Joshua,     . 

104,  107,  109 

Byllesby,  Rev.  Faber, 

166 

Caldwell,  N.  J., 

68 

Calkins,  Rev.  Lyman  1)., 

.       •     .          168,  174 

Camp,  Rev.  John, 

86 

Campbell,  Rev.  Robert, 

65,  85,  86 

Canterbury,  Archbishop  of,    . 

21 

Carhart,  Licentiate  Charles  Lyman, 

170 

Carlisle,  N.  Y.,            .            .            . 

^.            .                   69 

27 


208 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Carlton,  Rev.  Marcus  M., 

Carmel,  N.  Y., 

Carmichael,  Rev.  J.  M., 

Carpenter,  Elder  Philemon  H., 

Carter,  Rev.  Samuel  T., 

Case,  Rev.  Wheeler,  . 

Catechisms  of  Associated  Presbyteries, 

Catechisms,  Westminster,     . 

Chamberlain,  Licentiate  Albert, 

Chapman,  Rev.  Robert, 

Charles  II,      • 

Charlotte  Precinct  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

Cherry  Valley  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

Childs,  Rev.  Thomas  S.,         .  .  .         144,  146, 

Choate,  Rev.  Washington,     . 

Church  Buildings, 

Church  Extension, 

Churches  in  the  Province  of  New  York, 

Churches  in  Westchester  County  and  Philipse  Patent, 

Churches,  Rolls  of,     .      18-19,  33-35,  66-69,  99-101,  105 

Church  Lands, 


Church  of  England,    . 

Church  of  England,  Opposition  to. 

Church  Rates, 

Church  Services, 

Cincinnati  Memorial, 

Civil  Courts  of  Westchester  County,  N.  Y 

Civil  status  of  the  early  churches, 

Clark,  Ebenezer, 

Clark,  Rev.  John, 

Classis  of  New  York, 

Cleaveland,  Rev.  Edwards  P., 

Clinton,  Governor  George,  . 

Clinton  Precinct,  Presbyterian  Providence 

Close,  Licentiate  John, 

Close,  Rev.  David,     . 

Close,  Solomon, 

Cobb,  Rev.  Elisha  G., 

Cochran,  Rev.  Isaac  W., 

Cold  Spring  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

Coleman,  Rev.  James  W.,    . 

Collections,    . 

Collins,  Rev.  Charles  J., 

Collins,  Rev.  J., 

Colver,  Rev.  Anthony  W.,  . 

Commissioners'  F\md, 

Conimissioners  of  Charles  II, 

Committeemen, 


Society 


4,  7.  ^ 


10,  I 


144,  147 

3.70 

146 

138 

176 

34,  35-  40,  45.  49>  SI 
83 
31.32 
108,  158 

99 

20,  22 

33.34,37,45 

33.  35,  37,  ?8 

47,  148,  151,  163,  167 

167,  171 

5 

14,  147-149,  177-183 
7 
7 
08,  145-146,  171-176 

5 
5.  -6,  27,  28 
25,  26 
20,  23,  25,  26,  27,  28 
4.6 
131 
45, 
20-30 

97 

98,  100 

III 

167,  169,  170,  171 

47 

35,37 

39,  51 

33,  34,  35.  40 

63 

173 

145,  146,  147,  158 

102,  164 

165,  171,  176,  178 

82,  121-123,  156,  185 

167 

174 
167,  171 

122 

20 

128,  130 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


209 


Confession  of  Faith,  Westminster, 
Connecticut  Churches,  Polity  and  Creed  of, 
Connecticut,  General  Association  of, 
Connecticut,  General  Court  of, 
Connitt,  Rev.  George  W.,    . 
Constant,  Rev.  Silas, 


14,  31,  32,  51,  191 
12-11; 
S8,  89 

•      5.  'o.  13.  14 
144,  146,  148 


7.  8,  33,  34,  35.  36,  49.  5°.  5-.  59.  62,  65,  66,  68,  70,  71, 

72,  74,  75.  76,  77,  78,  79,  82,  84,  87,  88,  89,  90,  92-94 

Constitution  of  the  Associated  Westchester  Presbytery,  .  63-64 

Contingent  Fund,     .......  122 

"Convention  of  Correspondence"  of  the  Associated  Presbyteries,  86-S7 


Cornhury,  Lord, 

Corning,  Rev.  James  L., 

Cornwall  (Ct.)  Cliurch, 

Cornwall,  Rev.  John, 

Cortlandt  Manor,  Settlement  of,    . 

Cotton,  Rev.  John, 

Country,  The  State  of. 

Cox,  Rev.  Samuel  Hanson, 

Crane,  Rev.  Daniel, 

Credentials  of  Ministers,    . 

Crittenden,  Rev.  Samuel  W., 

Crocker,  Rev.  Daniel, 

Crompond  (N.  Y.)  Church,  .       17 

Croton  Falls  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

Croton  River, 
Gumming,  Rev.  Alexander, 
Gumming,  Rev.  William  J., 
Cummings,  Rev.  Lawrence  P., 

Daggett,  Rev.  Herman, 
Danner,  Rev.  Julius  L., 
Darien  (Ct.)  Church, 
Davenport,  Rev.  Henry  A., 
Daven]iort,  Rev.  James, 
Davenjiort,  Rev.  James"  R., 
Davenport,  Rev.  John, 
Davison,  Rev.  Isaac  S., 
Davison,  Rev.  Robert  A., 
Day,  Rev.  Ezra  H., 
Days  of  Fasting  and  Prayer, 
Dayspring  Church,  Yonkers,  N.  V., 
Dean,  Elder  Richard, 
Dean,  Licentiate  William  H., 
Dean,  Licentiate  Oliver  S., 
Deep  River  (dt.)  Church, 
Deer  Park  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Delevan,  Rev.  David, 


21,  25,  26 

174 

.     64,  67,  69,  91 

62,  63,  64,  67,  76,  90 

I,  2 

»5 

41-47,  160-162 

165,  169 
98 

20,  21 

104,    108,   109 

101 

8.  33'  34,  3^),  37,  39,  45,  46,  52,  55-  5^ 
103,  104,  108,  138,  145,  146,  151, 

166,  167,  1 68,  171 
42,  45 

30 

167,  169,  176,  194 

167.  173 

66,  67,  ICO 

167 

165,  167,  16S,  171,  178 

167,  171 

18,  19 

103,  107 

•  33,  34,  49.  5° 
168 

166,  175 
65,  68,  82 

•  41,42,  46,  47 

167,  176 
125 
108 
loS 

144,  146,  14S,  171,  182 

52,  68 

66 


2IO 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Demarest,  Rev.  James,  Jr., 

Denham,  Rev.  Thomas,      .        '     . 

Destructive  visitation  of  insects, 

DeVries,  Rev.  J.  Hendricks, 

DeWitt,  Rev.  John, 

Dexter,  Rev.  W.  Hart, 

Dey,  Rev.  Richard  N., 

Dickerson,  Rev.  Jonathan, 

Directory  for  Worship, 

Discipline,  Book  of, 

Division  of  the  Yorktown  Church, 

Division  of  Somers  Church, 

Division  of  1837-8, 

Dixon,  Rev.  John, 

Doctrinal  Belief  of  the  Churches  of  Con 

Dodd,  Rev.  Ira  S., 

Dodd,  Rev.  Stephen, 

Dongan,  Governor, 

Dover  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

Dow,  Licentiate  James  W., 

Dowd,  Rev.  Willis  W.,        . 

Draper,  Licentiate  Allan  W., 

Dudley,  Rev.  LaFayette, 

Duke's  Laws, 

Dumont,  Rev.  A.  Henry, 

Dunlap,  Licentiate  John, 

Dunlop,  Rev.  Samuel, 

Dutch  Church  at  Tarrytown,  N.  Y., 

Dutch  Settlers, 

Dutchess  County,  Presbytery  of,    . 

Dwight,  Rev.  Dr.  Timothy, 

Dye,  Rev.  Charles  B., 

Eastchester,  N.  Y., 

Eastchester  Church, 

East  Haven,  Conn., 

Eastman,  Rev.  John  H., 

East  Windsor  Theological  Seminary, 

Ecclesiastical  lands, 

Ecclesiastical  Status  of  the  Early  Clnircl 

Eddy,  Rev.  William  K.,       . 

Education,    .... 

Education,  ]>oarcl  of, 

"  Edwardian  "  Theology,    . 

Eggleston,  Elder  James  O., 

Eldership  of  the  Early  Churches, 

Elmsford  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

I'^ly,  Rev. , 


166,  173 
9,  18 

46 

168,  170 

171 

168,  170,  174,  175 

66,  92 

102,  103,  121,  131,  13s 

31,32,  190,  191 

48,  49,  50,  189,  190,  191 

71-78 

137-13S 
12S-140 

167,  176 

13-14 

16S,  173 

65,  67,  68,  76,  82,  88 

21 

35.  37,  39 
170 

167,  173 
170 
166 

5,  10,  20 
144 
170 

32,  33,  35 
I 
I 

31-57,  60,  71,  74.  75 

42 

145.  165,  174 

2,  5,  7,  8,  23,  25,  26 

5i  27 

65 

167,  169,  176,  193 

141 

5 

12-19 

167,  169,  T70 

122 

120 

So,  85,  87 

'58 

'5.37,38,51 

8,  62,  98 

lOI 


GENERA  r.    INDEX. 


2TT 


Ely,  Rev.  James, 
Ely,  Rev.  John, 
Ely,  Rev.  Samuel  R., 
Emmons,  Rev.  Dr., 
England,  Churcli  of, 
English  Settlers, 
"  Efiuivalent  Lands,  The," 
Esjierancc,  N.  Y.,  . 

Fagnani,  Rev.  Charles  P.,  . 
Fairfield  Co.  (Ct.)  Old  Consociat 
Fairfield  East  Consociation, 
Fairfield  West  Consociation, 
Faitoute,  Rev.  George, 
Federal  Constitution, 
Felt,  Rev.  Josci)h  B., 
Finney,  Rev.  Spencer  !>.,    . 
Fish,  Rev.  Peter,      . 
Fisher,  Elder  William, 
Fishkill  (N.  Y.)  Church,     . 
Fitchville,  Conn.,     . 
Fitz]>atrick,  Licentiate  James, 
Fletcher,  Governor, 
Fletcher,  Rev.  Donald, 
Florida  (N.Y.)  Church, 
Foot,  Rev.  Josejjh  I., 
Form  of  Government, 
Forsyth,  Rev.  Josejih, 
Foster,  Joseph  C,   . 
Frame,  Rev.  Reuben, 
Franklin  (N.  Y.)  Church,  . 
Franklin,  Delaware  Co.,  N.  Y., 
Frazec,  Rev.  John  IL, 
Fredcrickshurgh  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Frcderickshurgh  (N.  Y.)  West  CI 
Frceland,  Rev.  Daniel  N.,  . 
Freeman,  Rev.  John  N., 
Freeman,  Rev.  Jonathan,    . 
French  Settlers, 
Frey,  Rev.  Joseph  F.  C-  S  , 

Gallagher,  Rev.  George  W., 
Gardner,  Rev.  William, 
Garfiekl,  President,  Death  of. 
General  Association  of  Connectic 
General  Association  of  New  York 
General  Court  of  Ct)nnecticut, 
George  I,      . 


30.3 


urch, 


48,  49, 


144,  163,  165 

99 
103,  107,  109 

14 
4,  7,  21,  22,  23,  25,  26,  27,  28 


168,  176 
14,18 

18,  19,  38,  90,  96,  124 

19 

96 

46-7 

100 

167 

96 

158 

34.  39.  99 

147 

170 

22,  23 

166,  169,  176 

59 
103 

50,  81,  130,  188,  189,  190,*  191 
104,  106 
104,  107,  108,  109 
103,  107,  112,  135,  140,  142 
34.  5-.  65,  69,  95,  100 
69 
167,  172 
33f  34 

33.35.37.38,39.5' 

165,  176 

166,  173 
52 

3 
65,  67,  80,  S4-S5 

167,  169,  170 

16S,  170 

192 

88,  89 

88 

•       5.  'o.  '3.  '4 
21 


212 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


(jreorge  11,     . 

21,  22 

George  III,               ....... 

21 

Georgia,         ........ 

82 

Gibbs,  Rev.  Daniel,             ...... 

166,   169 

Gibson,  Rev.  Robert  P.,      . 

168,  171 

Gifts  of  land  to  ministers,                ..... 

9 

Gilead  Church,  Carmel,  N.  V.,       .       7,  19,  65,  67,  69,  70,  89,  91, 

loS,  no,  122, 

145,  146,  151,  166, 

167,  168,  171 

Gleson,  Rev.  Luther,           .             ... 

86 

Goodhue,  Rev.  George  F.,               ...              104,  105, 

144,  146,  150 

Goshen  (Ct.)  Church,           ...... 

69 

Goshen  (N.  Y.)  Church,      ...... 

51.  52 

Gospel  Propagation  Society,           ..... 

4,  25 

Government,  Form  of,         .             .            •    30,  32,  48,  49,  8r,  188, 

189,  190,  191 

Governors,  Royal,  Instructions  to,              .             .       •     . 

21 

Graham,  Rev.  Chauncey,    .             .             .             .32,  33,  34, 

35.  37,  40,  53 

Grant,  Rev.  Ebenezer,         .             .             .             •        73>  75>  76,  77 

,  98,  100,  lOI 

Gray,  Rev.  Thomas  M.,      ...... 

165,  169,  174 

Gray,  Rev.  William,            ...... 

66,  100 

Green,  Rev.  Elijah  W.,       ...... 

168,  169,  170 

Green,  Rev.  Jacob,           loi,  102,  103,  105,  109,  112,  125,  131,  132, 

135.  137,  142 

Greenburgh  (N.  Y.)  Church,             8,  62,  65,  67,  89,  loi,  104,  106, 

III,  115,  121 

Greenburgh  (N.  Y.)  Second  Church,         .... 

171.  177 

Greenburgh  (N.  Y.)  South  Church,     98,  loi,  103,  104,  106,  121,  122 

141,165,174 

Greenleaf,  Rev.  Joseph,  Jr.,             ..... 

166 

Greenwich,  Conn.,                ...... 

2,6,7 

Greenwich  (Ct.)  First  Church,       ....  166,  168, 

176, 179,  rSo 

Gregory,  Rev.  Daniel  S.,     .             .             .             .             .145, 

146,  165,  174 

Gregory,  Rev.  Elnathan,     ...... 

19 

"  Gregory's  Parish,"             ...... 

19.  35.  70 

Griffith,  Rev.  Griffith  H.,     .             .             .•            .             .            67, 

103, 124,  127 

Grover,  Rev.  Josejih,            ...... 

59 

Gubby,  Rev.  James,              ...... 

144,  146,  149 

Haight,  Rev.  Sylvanns, 

65,  68,  82 

Ilalliday,  Rev.  David  M.,    . 

165,  172 

Halloway,  Rev.  Charles  H.,            ....           145, 

146,  165,  172 

Hall's  Corner,  N.  Y., 

98 

Halsey,  Rev.  Samuel  P.,     . 

174 

Hammond,  Rev.  Israel,       ...... 

66,92 

Hancock,  Rev.  John,            ...... 

i66,  172 

Hanna,  Rev.  William,          .             .            .             .            . 

33.35 

Hanover  (N.  Y.)  Church,  ...... 

18.  34 

Hanover,  N.  J.,        . 

58 

Harrison,  Rey-  Marcus,       ...... 

99,  lOI 

Harrower,  Rev.  David,        ...... 

65,82- 

Hartford  (Cl.)  Church,        ....              144,  146, 

147,  165,  171 

GENERAL    INDEX. 


213 


Hartford,  Conn., 
Hartford  North  Association, 
Harvey,  Rev.  Joseph, 
Ilawley,  I.iccntiate  Samuel  S., 
Hawlcy,  Rev.  Charles, 
Hawley,  Rev.  Silas, 

Hawley,  Rev. , 

Hays,  Licentiate  Frank  H., 
Hayt,  Elder  John,    . 
Hazeltine,  Rev.  Henry  M., 
Hazzard,  Licentiate  Joseph, 
Heads  of  Agreement, 
Heathcote,  Col.  Caleb, 

Hedges,  Rev. , 

Heermance,  Rev.  Edgar  L., 

Hempstead  Plains,  N.  Y., 

Henderson,  Rev.  Josiah,     . 

Hendricks,  Rev.  John, 

Henry,  Rev.  James  V., 

Heresy, 

Heroy,  Rev.  Peter  H.,  .  104,  105,  145 

Hewit,  Rev.  Nathaniel, 

Hickok,  Rev.  Jonas, 

Highlands,  Orange  Co.,  N.  Y., 

Hinsdale,  Rev.  Horace  G., 

Historians,    . 

Hobbs,  Rev.  J.  Howard, 

Hodge,  Licentiate  Hugh  Leno.x, 

Hodge,  Licentiate  Richard  Morse 

Hodge,  Rev.  E.  B., 

Hodge,  Rev.  J.  Aspinwall, 

Hodge,  Rev.  William  H.,  . 

Hoes,  Rev.  R.  Randall, 

ilolyoke,  Mass., 

Hopewell,  Orange  Co.,  N.  \.. 

Hopkins,  Elder  Reuben, 

Hopkins,  Rev.  David, 

Horton,  Daniel, 

Hotchkin,  Rev.  Beriah, 

Howell,  Rev.  Jesse  L., 

Hoyt,  Rev.  James  H., 

Hudson,  Presbytery  of,       52,  73,  74,  75,  79,  91,  95-6,  99 

Hudson  River, 

Huguenot  Church,  New  Rochelle,  N.  Y 

Huguenot  Memorial  Church,  Pelham  Manor,  N.  Y., 

Huguenot  Settlement  at  New  Rochelle,  N.  Y., 

Humphrey,  Elder  Cornelius, 

Hunter,  Rev.  John  H., 


I,  '47 

15 

143,  144,  145 

108 

172 

173 

lOI 

170 

73.  74 

166,  172 
40 

13.  14.  15 

4,  6,  24,  25 

108 

166,  169,  175 

20,  96 

100 

lOI 

103,  ic6,  142 
84,  169 

165,  169,  171 

146,  149,  150 

65,  67,  82 

66,  91 

158,  165,  171 

163,  194 

168,  170,  176 

170 

170 

iSi 

145,  146,  159,  165,  171 
145,  146 

167,  172 
147 

52 

73 
172 

73 
86 

104,  106,  109 
167,  171 


146,  151, 
144, 


•45.  M* 


i-ioo,  10 


2,  124,  125, 


167,  168,  176,  179, 


24 

180 


49 
107 


214 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Huntington,  Rev.  Jonathan, 

Huntting,  Rev.  William,     .... 

Hyde,  Rev.  Eli,        ..... 

Hyde,  Rev.  William  Albert, 

Hyndshaw,  Rev.  James  K.,  ... 

Incorporation  of  Presbytery  of  Westchester,  Act  of, 

Incorporation  of  the  Early  Presbyterian  Churches, 

Indian  Paths, 

Indians,  Collection  for, 

Inglis,  Rev.  David, 

Intemperance, 

Irving,  Rev.  David, 

Irvington  (N.  Y.)  Church, 


Jackson,  Rev.  Abel, 

Jackson,  Rev.  Thomas, 

James  II,      . 

Jersey  City,  N.  J.,    .  .      ' 

Jewett,  Rev.  A.  D.  L., 

Johnston,  Licentiate  Frederick, 

Johnston,  Rev.  James  W.,  .  145,  i 

Johnston,  Rev.  John, 

Joline,  Rev.  John,    . 

Jones,  Rev.  Daniel, 

Jones,  Rev.  Eliphakt, 

Jones,  Rev.  John,     . 

Judd,  Rev.  Benjamin, 

Judicial  Commissions, 


Katonah  (N.  Y.)  Church,  . 

Kellogg,  Rev.  Samuel, 

Kelsey,  Licentiate  William  S., 

Kent,  Chief  Justice  James, 

Kent,  Rev.  Elisha, 

"  Kent's  Parish," 

Kenyon,  Licentiate  Fergus  L., 

Ker,  Rev.  Nathan, 

King,  Rev.  Andrew, 

King,  Rev.  Walter, 

King's  Bridge,  N.  Y., 

Kip,  Rev.  Isaac  L., 

Knight,  Rev.  Richard  Waller, 

Knypers,  Rev.  William  P., 

Lake  Mahopac,  N.  Y., 
Lane,  Rev.  Charles  S., 
Lane,  Rev.  Saurin  E., 
Lathrop,  Rev.  Daniel  W., 


46,  147, 


107,  131 

•(is 

9S 

67 

104,  107 

192 

28 
I 

40 

104,  105 

•     117,  154,  184 

IG4,  106,  loS,  lit,  113,  142 

166,  167,  168,  171,  177 


16,  17, 


6  s,  68, 
'66, 


158,  166,  167,  172, 


66,  67,  8: 

40,  52,  53. 
190- 


33>  35 


iS,  31, 


86 
100 
22 
66 

175 

170 

176 

98 

52 

.91 

18 

■  25 
100 
191 


35. 


167,  176,  180 

104,  106 

170 

53.  77" 

3''.  53-4 

33 

147 

5'.  52.95 

5'.  52,  73 

96 

42 

167,  172 

66,  82,  91 

96 

114 
16S,  176 
145,  146 
165,  169 


GRNKRAL    INDEX. 


215 


Law,  Rev,  Sidney  G., 

Leadbetter,  Rev.    .■Mexander, 

Ledou.x,  Rev.  L.  P.,        .     . 

Lee,  Judge  Elijah, 

Lee,  Rev.  Chauncey  D., 

Lee,  Rev.  Henry  F., 

Leete,  Report  of  Governor, 

Leggett,  Rev.  John  H., 

Lewis,  Rev.  Amzi,   .  .  59>  ^J- 

Lewis,  Rev.  Ichabod, 

Lewis,  Rev.  Isaac,  1st, 

Lewis,  Rev.  Isaac,  2d, 

Lewis,-  Rev.  Valentine  A., 

Life,  Rev.  William, 

Lincoln,  Assassination  of  President 

Lindsley,  Rev.  Aaron  I,.,    . 

Lindsley,  Rev.  Charles  E., 

Litchfield  North  Consociation, 

"  Little  Nine  Partners  near  ye  Oblong, 

Livingston,  Rev.  Henry  G 

Livingston,  William, 

Lockwood,  Jacob,    . 

London,  Bishop  of. 

Long  Island, 

Long  Island  Sound, 

Long,  Rev.  Chester, 

Long,  Rev.  John  D., 

Lord,  Rev.  Charles  E., 

Lord,  Rev.  William  R., 

Loring,  Rev.  Josephus  B., 

Lowe,  Rev.  John  G., 

Lundv,  Rev.  John, 

Lyman,  Rev.  Asa, 

Lynn,  Rev.  John  F., 

Lyon,  Rev.  David  C, 

Lyttlc,  Licentiate  Eugene  W., 


Macdonald,  Licentiate  Peter  M., 
Macoubrey,  Rev.  .\nthony  R., 
Madeira,  Rev.  Addison  D., 
Magee,  Rev.  George  A., 
Mahopac  Fails  (N.  Y.)  Church, 


167 
103,  106,  108,  144 
106 
72,  73 
.     144,  165,  169 
loS,  144,  145,  165,  175 
12 
.     loi,  103,  107 
6j,  64,  66,  6  >,  70,  76,  82,  86,  87,  90,  94 
33.  34.  35.  40,  44,  46,  49.  5^.  53-  7© 

73 

96,  97,  ICXJ 

145.  146,  J47.  163,  166 

165 

161-2 

107,  113.  '45.  '46,  151 
165,  172 

14 

35,  37,  39 

104,  108,  109 

30 
39 

21,  22 

'.47 


104, 


102,  10 


106,  125,  142 
16S,  17s 
167,  176 

167,  169,  173 

67 

65,  68,  82 

104,  106,  109 

100 

168,  170,  176 
104,  105 

170 

170 


Mallcry,  Rev.  Charles  P., 
Mamaroncck,  N.  Y., 
Mansfield,  Lord, 
38 


145,  146,  165,  168,  172,  174 
i(j8,  172 
144,  146,  149 
5'  7.  S,  33.  35.  37,  39.  5-,  65.  67,  69,  91, 
92,  102,  103,  1C4,  107,  112,  113,  121,  122, 
131,  13S,  145,  146,  r5t,  165,  166,  167,  168,  171 

168,175 

113,  114 

23 


2l6 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Manwaniug,  Rev.  Giles,     . 

Marcy,  Rev.  liradford, 

Marsh,  Rev.  Daniel, 

Marshall,  Rev.  William,     . 

Mason,  Rev.  John, 

Massachusetts,  Bloodshed  in, 

Mather,  Rev.  Warhani, 

Mattice,  Rev.  Robert  B.,     . 

McCampbell,  Rev.  George  M., 

McDougall,  Rev.  James,  Jr., 

McHarg,  Rev.  Charles  R., 

McKee,  Rev.  Joseph, 

McKelvey,  Rev.  Hugh  A., 

McKnight,  Rev.  John, 

McLaughlin,  Rev.  D.  D.  T., 

McLaughlin,  Rev.  Edward, 

McLean,  Rev.  William, 

McLeod,  Rev.  Robert  B.  F,.,     • 

McMillan,  Rev.  George  W., 

McNiece,  Rev.  John, 

Mead,  Elder  Andrew, 

Mead,  Elder  Thomas, 

Mead,  Rev.  Mark, 

Mead,  Rev.  Solomon, 

Meikle,  Rev.'  William, 

Merrick,  Rev.  James  L.,     . 

Middletovvn  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

Milford,  Conn., 

Millard,  Rev.  Nelson, 

Milledoler,  Rev.  Philip, 

Miller,  Elder  David, 

Miller,  Rev.  Alexander, 

Miller,  Rev.  Samuel, 

Mills,  Rev.  Frank  V., 

Mills,  Rev.  Samuel, 

Milton,  N.  Y., 

Ministers,  Credentials  of. 

Ministers,  Gifts  of  Land  to. 

Ministers,  Reception  of. 

Ministers,  Rolls  of. 

Ministry,  Laws  for  Settling  of. 

Ministry,  Maintenance  of, 

Minor,  Rev.  Jehu,    . 

Minutes,  Abstracts  of. 

Minutes,  Printed,     . 

Missionaries  of  the  Gospel  Propagation 

Missionary  Societies, 

Missionary  Society  of  New  Yorl 

Missions,  Board  of  Foreign, 


104,  107,  144,  145 

100 

63.  64,  65,  67,  85,  86,  87 

172 

103.  107,  138 

41 

24 

167,  171,  172 

167,  174 

165 
171 

173 
•     166 

77 

174 

66,  82,  loi 

66 

02,  103,  105,  109,  no,  125,  137 
•         67 
65,  66,  89,  96,  100 

125 


Society, 


6,  19, 


33.64 


106 

I.  32,  33.  34,  36,  49,  56 
104,  106,  174 
144 
65,  6S,  69,  89,  91 
2 

165,  173 
96 

135 

16S,  171 

96 

1 68 

33,  34,  35,  40,  45-  46 
86 

20,   21 

9 

I  28 

■6,  103-4,  144-5,  '65-8 
23,  26 
8-1 1 
33<  3(^,  53.  too 
192,  193 
192 
4,25 
119,  120 
96 

121 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


217 


Missions,  Board  of, 

Missions,  Foreign, 

Missions,  Home, 

Mitciiell,  Rev.  Gordon, 

Money, 

Monilaws,  Rev.  George, 

Monroe  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

Montgomery,  Licentiate  John, 

Moore,  Rev.  Edward  C., 

Moore,  Rev.  James  G., 

Morgan,  Rev.  Joseph, 

Morrill,  Rev.  George  W., 

Morris,  Col.  Lewis, 

Morrisania  (N.  V.)  First  Church, 

Morrisania  (N.  \'.),  Upper,  The  Union  Presbv 

Morse,  Rev.  Andrew  15., 

Morse,  Rev.  B.  Y., 

Morton,  Rev.  James,     . 

Mount  Kisco  (N.  Y.)  Church,  104,  loS 

Mount  Pleasant  (N.  Y.)  Church, 


Mount  Vernon,  N.  Y., 

Mount  Vernon  First  Church,    . 

Mudge,  Rev.  Lewis  W., 

Muirson,  Rev.  George, 

Mundy,  Rev.  Ezra  F.,  .  145,  146,  163,  1 

Murdoch,  Rev.  Uavid, 

Mvcrs,  Rev.  A.  B.  L., 


Narragansett  Pier  (R.  I.)  Church, 

Narratives, 

Nesbit,  Rev.  Alexander, 

Neutral  Ground, 

New  Brunswick,  Presbytery  of, 

Newburgh  {N.  Y. )  Church,      . 

New  Canaan,    . 

Newcomb,  Rev.  Homer  S., 

New  Fairfield  (Ct.)  .South  Society, 

New  Haven,  Conn., 

New  Haven  First  Church, 

New  Haven,  South  Reformed  Clinicli 

New  Hempstead  (N.  Y .)  Chiiicli, 

Newman,  Rev.  .Vrthur, 

New  Palt/.  (N.  Y.)  Church,       . 

New  Rochellc,  N.  Y.,   . 

New  Rochellc  Church, 

New  Windsor  (N.  Y.)  Church, 


120 

121,  123,  156,  1S5 

40,  82,  96,  122,  123,  156,  185 

167,  169,  176 

9,  II 

174 

66,  68,  69,  89,  91 

170 

16S,  176 

104,  108 

18,  24,  25 

167 

^3.  27 
178 

terian  Church  of,  177 

168 

67 
167 

no,  145,  146,  166,  167,  16S,  172 

34.  39.  44.  5-.  66,  69,  91,  100, 

103,  104,  106,  III,  165,  168,  174 

180 

16S,  176,  180 


166,  176 

25.  27 
65,  173,  176,  194 
16S,  173 
144,  147 


182 

i2,   I  I  5-7,   154-5,   183-4 

165,    169,    175 

42-4,  46 

17,   18 

99 

86 

145,  147,  16S 

65 

I,  147 

65,  16S,  176,  I  So 

165,  176,  180-1 

65,69 

172 

68,99 

2.5 

5,  7,  12,  24,  96,  100,  103,  107, 121, 
13S-140,  165,  166,  167,  168,  172 
35.  37.  5'.  99 


2l8 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


New  York,         ...... 

New  York,  First  Congregational  Church,  .  .      65, 

New  York,  Presbytery  of,  .  16,  17,  iS,  32,  36,  52,  54, 

97,  98,  loo-i,  102, 
New  York,  Rose  Street  Church, 
Nimmo,  Rev.  Joseph,    . 
Nine  Partners,  N.  Y.,   . 
Niven,  Rev.  Duncan  C, 
Niven,  Rev.  Thornton  M.,  Jr. 
Nixon,  Rev.  George,     . 
North  Castle,  N.  Y.,     . 
Northern  Associated  Presbytery, 
North  New  York  Church, 

North  River,  Presbytery  of,        .  .  .  92,  95, 

Northrop,  Elder  Aaron, 
North  Salem  (N.  Y.)  Church,  5,  16,  34-5,  37,  38,  39,  45.  S'' 
91,92,  94,  99,  loi,  102,  103,  104,  106,  109,  145,  146, 
North  Stamford  (Ct.)  Church, 
Norwalk,  Conn., 
Nott,  Rev.  Samuel, 

Oakly,  John, 

"  Oblong,  The," 

Orr,  Rev.  Robert  W.,  . 

Osborn,  Rev.  Joel, 

Osborn,  Rev.  , 

Osborne,  Rev.  Truman, 

♦ 
Ostrom,  Rev.  James  I., 

Overseers, 

Owen,  Elder  John, 

Owen,  Rev.  Henry  J.,     . 

Owen,  Rev.  Joseph, 


Palmer,  Elder  John, 
Parishes  of  Westchester  County,  N.  Y 
Parish  officers, 
Parsippany  (N.  J.)  Church, 
Patterson,  N.  Y., 

Patterson  (N.  Y. )  Church,      5,  19,  33,  34,  37,  39,  46,  52,  57,  65,  69,  95,  99,  100, 
lor,  102,  103,  105,  121,  145,  146,  165,  167,  16S,  172 


43.  47 
67,  69,  84,  85,  91 

59.  85,  91,  95.  96, 

143.  144,  177.  178 

67,  85,  91 

103,  107,  108,  138 

49 

MS.  146 

165,  174 

165,  175 

2,  42,  44 

86 

176,  180 

loi,  138,  164,  176 

135 

62,  64,  65,  66,  69, 
165,  166,  168,  172 
64,  68,  90,  94 


63 

3.35 

.37 

103,  1 20- 1 

65 

82,  98, 

1 00 

99 

100 

98 

20 

132. 

135 

170, 

174 

I 

04,  loS, 

109 

114, 163 


20, 23 

59 


Patterson,  Rev.  William, 

Payne,  Rev.  Thomas, 
Peck,  Rev.  Joseph, 
Peekskill,  N.  Y., 
Peckskill  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

Peekskill  First  Church, 


103,105,  109,  III,  112,  113,  135,  142,  t4S, 

F46,  151,  1 58,  163,  165,  169,  173 

107 

•      16,  10,31,  33,  34,  57 

7,78,96 

7,  S,  68,  78,  95,  96,  9S,  100,  loi,  103,  107, 

109,  III,  140,  166,  167,  172-3 

.     t66,  167,  172 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


219 


Peekskill  Independent  Presl)yterian  Churcli 
Peekskill  Second  Church, 
Peekskill  St.  Peter's  Church, 
Pelham  Manor,  N.  Y., 
Pelham,  N.  Y., 
Penman,  Rev.  John  S.,  , 
Perkins,  Rev.  Jason, 
Permanent  Clerks, 
Perry,  Rev.  Talmon  C, 
Pettigrcvv,  Rev.  Samuel, 
Pheljis,  Rev.  Samuel, 
Philadelphia  Convention, 
Philadelphia,  Presbytery  of, 
Philippi  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Philipsborough,  N.  Y., 
Phil  ipse  Patent,  N.  Y., 
Phillips,  Licentiate  James  K., 
*'  Phillips  Precinct"  First  Church, 
"  Phillips  Precinct  "  Second  Church, 
"Phillips  Precinct"  West  Church, 
Philippi,  West,  Church, 
Phraner,  Rev.  Wilson, 
Picton,  Rev.   Thomas, 
Pinckney,  Elder  Ira, 
Pine  Plains  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Pittsburgh  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Pittsburgh  (Pa.)  Convention, 
Pittstown,  N.  Y., 
Plan  of  Union,    . 
Piatt,  Rev.  Isaac  W.,    . 
-  Piatt,  Rev.  W.  K., 
Pleasant  Valley  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Pleasant ville  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Polity  of  the  Connecticut  Churches, 
Port  Chester  (N.  Y.)  Church, 


Porter,  Inkier  James, 
Porter,  Rev.  David, 
Potts  Memorial  Church, 
Potts,  Rev.  Arthur, 
Potts,  Rev.  George, 
Poughkeepsie,  N.  Y.,    . 
Poughkceiisie  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Pound  Ridge  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

loi,  102 
Presbyterial  Visitation, 
Presbyterian  Education  Society, 
Presbyterian  Providence  Society, 


65,  68,  78-9,  89,  91,  92 
165,  166,  167,  168,  173,  176 


3 

23.  25 

168,  170,  171 

65,  82,  100 

194 

145,  159.  165 

104,  107,  109 

65,  66,  84,  91 

134,  1.35 
17,  18 

'7.  33'  44 
I 

3 

170 
16,  18,  31,  33,  37,  38 

I''.  3?,^  34.  37,  38.  45 

16,  70 

17.  19 
165,  174,  180 

98,  102,  103 

114 

99 

34,  39,  52,  69,  99 

132 

69 

128, 131,  135 

175 

174 

3.  35.  37,  39,  52,  69,  99 

167,  168,  176,  180 

'3-15 

104,  loS,  no,  144,  145,  146, 

165,  167,  16S,  173 

73 

86 

167,  173,  178 

166,  173 

178 

86 

33^  34,  37.  39,  ^>5,  67,  69,  91,  99 

33^  35-  37.  39.  45'  46.  52,  65,  68,  69,  91,  100, 

3,  105,  115,  i.M,  145.  146,  isr,  165,  173 

1 18-9,  154,  1S6-7 

119 

35.37 


220 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Presbyterian  Society, 

Presbytery,  Associated  Westchester, 

Presljytery,  Northern  Associated, 

Presbytery,  Saratoga  Associated, 

Presbytery  of  Albany, 

Presbytery  of  Bedford, 

Presbytery  of  Connecticut, 

Presbytery  of  Dutcliess  County, 

Presbytery  of  Hudson,  52,  73,  79,  91,  95 

Presbytery  of  Long  Island, 

Presbytery  of  Morris  County,     . 

Presbytery  of  New  Brunswick, 

Presbytery  of  New  York,         16,  17,  18, 


95. 
.    140,  141, 

7,  16,  31-57,  71, 
99-100,  102,  103, 

59,  62,  82,  83,  85, 


Presbytery  of  New  York,  Fourth, 
Presbytery  of  New  York,  Second, 
Presbytery  of  New  York,  Third, 
Presliytery  of  North  River, 


Presbytery  of  Philadelphia, 

Presbytery  of  Suffolk, 

Presl)ytery  of  Westchester, 

Price,  Rev.  Eliphalet,    . 

Prime,  Rev.  Nathaniel  S., 

Prime,  Licentiate  Samuel  Irenacus, 

Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts,  S 

Providence  (R.  I.)  Church, 

Provision  pay,    . 

Purdy,  Elder  James, 

Purdy,  Rev.  Abraham, 

Quinn,  Rev.  Michael,     . 


Raids,  British, 

Ramsey,  Rev.  James  B., 

Rates,  Church, 

Raymond,  Elder  Edward, 

Read,  Elder  Aaron, 

Red  Mills  (N.  Y.)  Church, 


45 

104,  108 

9,  10,  20,  23,  25 

•  58 

.     112,  117,  125 

5.  7,  8,  33,  35,  37,  39,  52,  65,  67,  69,  91,  92,  102, 

103,    104,    107,    114,    115,   I2t,  122,   131,  138, 
145,   146,   151,   1 65,   166,  167,   168,  171 

Reformed  Churcli,  ]5pard  of  Domestic  Missions  of,        .  .  181 


,  36,  37,  52,  58,  59,  85, 
loo-i,  102,  103,  III, 
150,  164,  169, 
I II, 
91,  92,  102, 

•    138,  139, 

91,  92,  95,  98 

103,  138, 


ciety  for 


I44> 


97 

52,  58-94,  98 

86,  87,  89 

86,89 

38,95 

,  102-142,  151 

143-163,  164 

74.  75>  95.  97 
124,  125,  126 
96 
86,  87,  89,  93 
17,  18 
91,  95,  96-98, 

143.  144,  149. 
177,  178,  183 

139.  177,  178 

III,  164,  177 

147,  164,  177 

-99,  1 01,  102, 

152,  164,  176 

17,  18 

17,  18,  37,  56 

I.  165-195 

98 

103,  106,  125 

108 

4,  25 

146,  148-149 

II 

159 
65,  66,  68,  82 


Reid,  Rev.  Lewis  H  , 

Reid,  Rev.  John, 

Relief  Fund, 

Religious  Liberty, 

Religious  Privileges  of  the  Early  Settler 


167,  168 

167.  175 

40,  123,  156,  185 

26,  30 

6 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


22  I 


Remington,  Rev.  David, 

102,  103,  107 

Rec|ua,  Rev.   Artliur, 

.      168,  170,  171 

Reunion  of  1869, 

156-160 

Revivals,             ...... 

S2,  115,  154,  184 

Revolution,  American, 

29,  41-46,  96-98 

Rice,  Rev.  Chauncey  D., 

167 

Richardson,  Rev.  Richard  H., 

.    104,  107,  145,  146,  151 

Ridgcbury  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

68,69,91 

Ridgefield,  Conn.,          .... 

65,  91 

Ridgefield  Patent,           .... 

2,6 

Riggs,  Rev.  Charles  H., 

167 

Riverdale  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

166,  167,  168,  173,  177 

Roberts,  Rev.  Evan, 

66 

Roberts,  Zachariah, 

25 

Robertson,  Rev.  Samuel, 

lOI 

Rodger,  Rev.  James  G., 

16S,  176 

Rogers,  Licentiate  Arthur  G.,   . 

170 

Rogers,  Rev    John, 

77.  79.  96 

Rogers,  Rev.  Medad, 

63,  64,  65 

Rolls  of  Churches,           iS-19,  33-35,  o6-(>9,  99 

-101,  105-108,  145-146,  171-176 

Rolls  of  Ministers, 

33,  64-66,  103-4,  144-5,  165-8 

Roman  Catholics, 

20 

Romeyn,  Rev.  John  B., 

96 

Rumbout  (Fishkill,  N.  Y.)  Church, 

33.  34,  37.  39.  52.  65,  99 

Rye,  N.Y.,        .... 

.       2,  5,  6,  9,  10,  23.  25 

Rye  (N.  Y.)  Church,               7,  S,  9,  10,  16,  17, 

18,  26,  27,  33,  34,  37,  44,  46,  97, 

loi,  102,  103,  107,  115,  121,  144,  145,  146,  150,  165,  168,  173-4 

Sabbath  Desecration, 

•     117,154.184 

Sabbath-schools, 

119,  154,  155,  184 

Sabellianism,       .... 

84 

Sacket,  Rev.  Samuel,     .                            -7. 

II,  .6,  17,  18,32,  33.34.35,36, 

37.  45.  55-6,  74,  75 

Sahler,  Rev.  Daniel  D., 

.    166,  169,  171 

Salem  (South  Salem,  N.   Y.)  Church,         5,  7, 

16,  19,  3',  33.  34.  37.  39.  52,  56. 

99,  101,  1 

03,  104,  107,  109,  115,  121,  122, 

135.  145. 

146,  151,  159,  165,  167,  168,  174 

Salem  (Conn.)  Church, 

65,  68 

Salem,  Upper  (North  Salem,  N.  Y.)  Church, 

5.  '6.  34-5.  37.  38.  39-  45. 

51,  62,  64,  65,  66, 

69,  91,  92,  94,  99,  loi,  102,  103, 

104,  106,  109,  133, 

145,  146,  151,  165,  166,  168,  172 

Saratoga  Associated  Presbytery, 

.   "         .             .                86,  89 

Saunders,  Rev.  Stephen, 

101,  102,  103,  107 

Savoy  Confession, 

13,  14 

Sawpit,  N.  Y., 

no 

Sawyer,  Rev.  Rollin  A., 

166,  171,  176 

Sa.xton,  Rev.  Noah  C, 

97,  lOI 

Saybrook  Platform, 

13,  14 

222 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Saybrook,  Synod  of, 

Scarsdale,  Manor  of,  N.  Y., 

Schenck,  Rev.  Elias  S., 

Schenck,  Rev.  Harris  R., 

Scotland,  Licentiate  Alexander, 

Scott,  John  Morris, 

Scott,  Rev.  Willard, 

Scudder,  Rev.  Henry  M., 

Seamen's  Friend  Society, 

Secession  of  Rev.  Samuel  Sack 

Seeley,  Rev.  Amos, 

Seeley,  Rev.  Augustus  H., 

Seeley,  Rev.  .Charles, 

Seeley,  Rev.  George  A., 

Settlement  of  Putnam  County,  N.  Y., 

Settlement  of  Westchester  County,  N. 

Settlers,  Col.  Heathcote's  Description 

Settlers,  Dutch, 

Settlers,  English, 

Settlers,  French, 

Seward,  Rev.  Dwight  i\L, 

Sharon,  Conn., 

Sharon  Mountain,  Conn., 

Sherwood,  Rev.  Nathan  M. 

Shiland,  Rev.  Andrei\', 

Shimeall,  Rev.  Richard  C, 

Simcoe,  Col., 

Sinclair,  Rev.  James, 

Sing  Sing  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

Sing  Sing  Prison, 
Slavery, 

Sloughter,  Governor, 
Smith,  Elder  William  L., 
Smith,  Dr.  Matson, 
Smith,  Licentiate  William, 
Smith,  Rev.  E.  Bailey, 
Smith,  Rev.  John, 
Smith,  Rev.  J.  Ritchie, 
Smith,  Rev.  Roswell  D., 
Smith,  Rev.  Thomas  G., 
Smith,  Rev.  T.  Ralston, 
Smith,  Rev.  William  H., 
Smith,  Rev.  Zcnas, 
Smith,  William, 
Smithfield  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
SmuUcr,  Rev.  Henry  W., 
Snyder,  Rev.  Peter, 


et  and  the  Cronipond  C 


hurch, 


i3>  14 

24 

lO-l, 

106, 

16S,  172 

167, 

169, 

171,  172 
170 
30 

m 
1, 

167,  175 
172 
121 

36 
106 

104, 

106, 

145,  146 

68 

174 

I 

3 

165,  175 

45 
69 
145,  146,  147 
104,  loS,  142,  145,  146,  151,  158,  165 

178 

45 
108,  146 

;.  34. 37^  39. 44-  46, 5--  66, 69, 91, 100, 

102,    103,   104,    106,    III,   165,    168,   174 

103 

161 

22 

113.   135 

139 

I/O 

I -1 5.  '65. 169 

16,  17,  iS,  32,33,34,35,  54-5 
167,  169,  173 
145,  146,  166    f 
67,  98,  lOI 

166, 175' 
166 

68 

30 

99 

104,  108,  145,  146,  151,  159 

173 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


223 


Somers,  N.  Y.,  .  •  •  ~ 

Somers  (N.  Y.)  Church,       8,  65   68,  69,  91,  103,  108,  110,  131,  137-8,  165,  174 
Sours,  Elder  Ephraim,    .  .  •  •  •  H4.  '59 

South  East  Center  (N.  Y.)  Chuicli,       .     104,  108,  in,  114,  14°.  M4.  MS.  '46, 

150,  151,  165,  16S,  174,  181 
Soutli  East  (N.  Y.)  Church,         16,  17,  18,  31,  33,  37,  38,  39,  44,  46,  52,  96,  99, 

100,  lor,  102,  103,  105,  no,  114,  135, 

140,  144,  143,  146,  166,  174 
South  Salem  (N.  Y.)  Church,  see  Salem  (South  Saleui,  N.  Y.)  Church. 
Spaulding,  Rev.  Joshua, 
Specie,    .... 
Spiritual  Life,     . 
Spuyten  Duyvil  Creek, 
Stamford,  Conn., 
Stamford  First  Church, 
Stanford  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Stansbury,  Rev.  Abraham  O.,    . 
State  of  the  Country, 
Stated  Clerks,     . 
Statistical  Reports, 
Stebbins,  Rev.  George, 
Stebbins,  Rev.  Henry  H., 
Steele,  Rev.  Thomas  C, 
Sterling,  Licentiate  Richard, 
Stevens,  Rev.  John, 
Stewart,  Rev.  William, 
Stillwater  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Stipends, 

St.  John,  Elder  Moses, 
St.  John,  Rev.  John  R., 
Stoddard,  Rev.  Jason  B., 
St.  Peter's  Church,  Peekskill,  N.  Y. 
.Strong,  Rev.  Addison  K., 
.Strong,  Rev.  Benjamin, 
Sturgeon,  Rev.  Robert, 

Sturgcs,  Rev.  , 

Succasunna  (N.  J.)  Church, 
Suffolk,  Presbytery  of, 
Sunday  Milk-Tratfic, 
Sybrandt,  Licentiate  William  H., 
Synod  of  New  York, 


Synod  of  New  York  and  New  Jersey, 
Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia, 
Synod  of  Pittsburgh, 
Systematic  Beneficence, 

Tariffville  (Ct.)  Church, 
Tarlton,  Col., 
29 


. 

98,  100 

9 

82,  1 1 5-6,  154-5,  1S3-4 

42 

2,  147 

147,  165,  166,  167,  174 

64,  67,  69 

lOI 

41-7,  160-2,  192 

S3,  142,  163,  194 

n6,  123,  155,  156,  184,  185 

100,  102,  103,  107,  125 

166,  173 

146,  166,  169,  175 

102 

86 

104 

65 

8-1 1 

73 

65,82 

67,  146 

8 

168,  171 

33.  35.  36 

18 

34 

59 

17,  18,  37,  56 

.  117-8,154-5 

170 

102,  w},,  124,  125,  126,  127,  140, 

144,  149,  153,  164,  189 

.   38,  49.  5 «.  52.  95.  98 

3 

I,  32,  36,  48,  49 

144, 145, 150, 154 

45 


224 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Tarrytown,  N.  Y., 

Tarrytown  Dutch  Church, 

Taylor,  Rev.  James  H., 

Taxation  for  Support  of  Churche 

Teese,  Rev.  David, 

Teller,  Elder  Joshua, 

Temperance, 

Tennent,  Rev.  William, 

Tennessee, 

Terrett,  Licentiate  William  R., 

Terry,  Licentiate  Israel  N., 

Terry,  Rev.  Calvin, 

Terry,  Rev.  Roderick,    . 

Theological  Seminary,    . 

Thirty-nine  Articles, 

Thomas,  Rev.  J.  H.,     . 

Thompson,  Rev.  Andrew, 

Thompson,  Rev.  Robert  G., 

Thompson,  Rev.  William  J., 

Thompson ville  (Ct.)  Church,     .  143,  144, 

Throgg's  Neck  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

Todd,  Rev.  George  T., 

Toleration,  The  Act  of, 

Tomlinson,  Rev.  George, 

Townley,  Rev.  John, 

Tract  Cause, 

Tract  Societies, 

Tracy,  Rev.  William, 

Treasurers, 

Tremont  (N.  Y.)  Church, 

Trial  of  Dr.  Ebenezer  White, 

Trial  of  Rev.  Griffith  H.  Griffith 

Trussell,  Rev.  John  H., 

Trustees  of  the  Presbytery  of  Westchester, 

Trustees  of  the  Society  of  Morris  County, 

Tryon,  Governor, 

Twombly,  Rev.  Alexander  S., 

Union  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Uniformity,  The  Act  of, 
United  Foreign  Missionary  Socioiy, 
Upson,  Rev.  Charles  E., 

Vail,  Rev,  Richard  P.  H., 

Van  Brunt,  Rev.  Rutgers, 

Van  Cortlandt,  Manor  of, 

Van  Keuren,  Rev    Benjamin, 

Van  Rennselaer,  Elder  William  P., 


03.  105 
45.  146 


172 

5,  9,  10,  20,  23,  26 

104, 

106,  145,  146,  151 

158 

117 

9,  II,  16,  17,  iS 

6s 

170 

170 

144 

.  167,  169,  173 

122,  123 

14 

67 

100 

112, 

135,  144,  145, 163 

145,  146,  166,  171 

158, 

165,  166,  16S,  175 

.  166,  168,  175 

.  104,  108,  109 

22 

166,  169 

62 

,  63,  65,  67,  90,  98 

122 

120 

166,  169 

.  142,  163,  194 

•  165,  175.  177 

137-138 

124-127 

168, 174 

19s 

59 

29 

165,  175 

33.  52,  65,  96,  100 

22 

119 

168 

167,  175 

104,  108 

104 

113.  158 

GENERAL    INDEX. 


2iS 


Van  Slyke,  Rev.  Evert, 

Vestrymen, 

"View  of  tlic  Late  Difficulties,"  etc., 

Visitation,  Presbytcrial, 

Waite,  Rev.  Henry  R., 
Walker,  Rev.  George, 
Walkill  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Wallace,  Elder  John, 
Wallace,  Rev.  Charles  C, 
Waller,  Rev.  William  15., 
Walton  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Walton,  Rev.  John, 
Wappingers  Creek  (N.  Y.)  Church, 
Ward,  Rev.  Edmund, 
Welcher,  Rev*.  Manfred  P., 
Wells.  Rev.  Elijah  D., 
Westchester,  N.  Y.,  . 
Westchester  (N.  Y.)  Church,     . 
Westchester  Co.,  N.  Y., 
Westchester,  Presbytery  of. 
Western  Foreign  Missionary  Society, 
"  Western  Memorial,"     . 
Westervell,  Rev.  Samuel  D., 
West  Farms  (N.  Y.)  Church,  .       96,  100, 

Westminster  Church,  Yonkers,  N.  \ 
Westminster  Standards, 

West  Somers  (N.  Y.)  Congregational  Church, 
Whipple,  Rev.  William  W., 
Whitcomb,  Rev.  C.  B., 
White,  Elder  Ebenezcr,  M.D., 
White,  Rev.  Erskine  N., 
White,  Rev.  Irving  E., 
White,  Rev.  Jolin,  ist,    . 
White,  Rev.  John,  2d,    . 
White,  Licentiate  John, 
While,  Rev.  Samuel, 
White  Plains,  N.  Y.,     . 
White  Plains  (N.  Y.)  Church,         5,  iS,  ;^;^,  34,  37, 

103,  104,  106, 
Whitestown,  N.  Y., 
Whittemorc,  Rev.  Williams  H 
Wickes,  Rev.  Thomas  S., 
Wickham,  Rev.  Joseph  D., 
Willard,  Rev.  Livingston, 
William  and  Mary,  0 

Windiiam,  Conn., 
Wise  well,  Rev.  George  F., 


166,  175 

23 

71 

IIS-9,  154,  IS6-7 

167,  176 

.  104,  106,  109 

51.  52,  68 

135 

166,  171 

16S,  172 

65 

18 

99 

18 

167,  169,  174,  176 

100 

2,  5,  6,  7,  23,  26,  27 

5,  6,  7,  25,  26,  27 

1,23,  25,  28,42,45,  96 

•   95.  1C4-195 

120,  121,  133,  134 

131 

104,  105,  145,  146,  151 

107,  III,  165,  167,  16S,  175 

1^)6,  167,  168,  175-6,  177 

•  M.  31,  32.  49.  50.  51 

.38 

168 

174 

135.  '37-8 

172 

16S,  175 

66,  68 

105,  106 

109 

67 

2,  42,  46,  64,  98 

44.  46,  54,  55.  9S,  loi,  102, 

121,  145,  F46,  151,  166,  175 

85 

101,  107 

ICXD 

100 

^73 

22 

1 48 

173 

226 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Women's  Missionary  Societies, 
Wood,  Licentiate  Charles, 
Wood,  Rev.  Frank  A., 
Woodhull,  Rev.  Nathan, 
Wright,  Rev.  Edward,   . 
Wynkoop,  Rev.  Richard, 


i86 

170 

.     166,  169,  170 

96 

.     103,  106,  109 

loi,  102,  105,  no,  124,  125,  127 


1, 23, 177 

167,  176,  179,  180 

166,  167,  175,  177 

166,  167,  I6S,  175,  177 


Yonkers,  N.  Y., 

Yonkers,  N.  Y.,  Dayspring  Church, 

Yonkers,  N.  Y.,  First  Church, 

Yonkers,  N.  Y.,  Westminster  Church, 

Yorktown,  N.  Y.,  .  .  .  .  .  .  2 

Yorktown  (N.  Y.)  Church,     5,  7,  9,  11,  18,  33;  34,  36,  37,  38,  39,  45,  46,  S^,  55- 

56,  60,  65,  67,  69,  71-78,  99,  100,  loi,  102, 

103,   104,   105,   115,   I2T,  122,  124-127, 
145,    146,   151,   166,   167,  176 

Yorktown  (N.  Y.)  Congregational  Church,         67,  69,  71-78,  91,  103,  124-127 
Young,  Elder  Ezra,         ......  125,  135 

Young,  Rev.  Daniel,      ......  68 


CORRIGENDA." 


Page  5,  line  7,  after  Sabbath  insert  ". 
"     i8,  lines  11  and  27,  after  Kclnuind  Ward  read  1727-1729. 
"     24,     '•      13  and  24,  read  Boudet  or  IJondet.  \ 

"     25,  line  "Ty^for  house  read  home. 

"     31,     "     24, />/.(■(■?■/ [Minutes  of  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County,  pp. 
1  and  2.] 

Page  32,  line  26,  insert  [Minutes  of  the   Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County, 
pp.  4  and  5.] 

Page  32,  line  33,  insert  [Minutes  of  the  Presbytery  of    Dutchess  County, 

P-  5-] 

Page  33,  line  6,/cr  1862  read  1762. 

"  "      "     12,  after  Rumbout  insert  "  " 

"  "      "     2K„for  Nov.  24  read  Nov.  25. 

"  "      "     39,  yir  June  17  read  June  18. 

"  34,  lines  24  and  44,  for  Oct.  11  read  Oct.  12. 

"  "   line  40,  for  1774  read  Oct.  1773. 
"       "       "     41,  for  1863-1763  read  1763-1767. 
"       "  after  Charlotte  Precinct,  /'or  May  12  read  May  2. 

"  35'  «A'''  Presb.  Providence, y<7;- May  12  read  May  2. 

"  36,  line  18,  insert  [Minutes  of  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County,  p. 

43] 

Page  37,  line  21,  for  Rondout  read  Rumbout. 

Page  41,  line  28,  insert  [Minutes  of  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County, 
pp.  90-1.1 

Page  42,  line  14,  insert  [Minutes  of  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County,  p. 

94-] 

Page  46,  line  23,  insert  [Minutes  of  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County, 
pp.  124-5.] 

Page  47,  line  31,  insert  [Minutes  of  the  Presbytery  of   Dutchess  County,  p. 

137] 

Page  49,  line  i,  after  Virginia  insert  a  eomma. 


♦The  author  is  responsible  for  most  of  the  errors  and  all  of  the  omissions, 
to  which  attention  is  here  called.  While,  perhaps,  they  are  not  of  great  im- 
l)ortance,  yet  accuracy  and  completeness  demand  that  tiie  corrections  should 
be  made. 


228  CORRIGENDA. 

Page  50,  line  37,    insert  [Minutes  of  the  Presbytery  of  Dutchess  County, 
pp.  130-133.] 

Page  52,  line  2\,for  pastors  ;vrtr/ pastor. 

"       "      "     25, /"cr  Warrick  ;r<?f/ Warwick. 

"      53>    "       Iff"''  John  Minor  read  Jehu  Minor. 

"      56,    "     Tflifor  May  13  read  Sept  4. 

"       "  last  line,  omit  4  after  Sept. 

"      57,  line  \,for  1813  read  1812. 

"      64,  last  line, ybr  Cornvvell  rff/f/ Cornwall. 

"      65,  line  \\,for  Feb.  23  read  Feb.  24. 

"       "      "     2p,for  Sept.  27  read  Sept.  28. 

"       "      "     42,  for  June  3  read  June  4. 

"      66,    "     II,  after  Knight  insert  S.  S.,  Sing  Sing. 

"      67,    "     16, /^;- 1810-1812  ;-(V?(/ 1810-1811. 

"       "      "     22,/('r  May  8  ;v<7(/ May  9. 

"       "      "     23,/('r  May  13  ;Ya(/ May  14. 

"       "      "     26,  for  Stamford  read  Stanford. 

"      68,    "       6,/(5;- Nov.  18  ;-(V?r/ Nov.  19. 

"      69,    "     32,  /(';■  Stamford  read  Stanford. 

"      89,    "       Z,  for  October  17  read  Ocidber  18. 

"      93,    "     14,  for  10  7-ead  18. 

"      99,  aboT'e  Robert  Chapman  insert  Robert  Porter,  S.S. 

"    100,  line  34, y*';'  Freeman  read  Truman. 

"    103,   "     i5,y('r  July  24  r^r7(/ January  24. 

"      "      "     26,  after  Nathaniel  insert  S. 

"    104,    "       S,for  Apr.  20,  1S42,  7-ead  Oct.  1841. 

"      "      "     23,  insert  S.  S.,  Croton  Falls. 

"      "      "     24,  insert  S.  S.,  Croton  Falls. 

"      "      "     44, /fr  1760  rmr/ i860. 

"    T05,   "     34, /(7;- Apr.  1859  rm(/ Apr.-Sept.  1859. 

"      "      "     38,ybr  Sept.  1833  ;r«(/ Apr,  1831. 

"      "      "     40,  before  1832  insei-t  May-Sept. 

"    106,  to  list  of  Pastors  anef  Stated  Supplies   of  Lower  Greenlmrglt   add 
David  Remington,  S.S.,  May,  1831-Jan.,  1832. 

Page  106,  line  34,/^?-  Aug.,  1832,  read  May,  1832. 

Page  107,  to  list  of  Pastors  and  Stated  Supplies  of  West  Farms  add  George 
Stebbins,  S.S.,  1828,  and  William  Gray,  S.S.,  1835. 

Page  108,  to  list  of  Pastors  and  Stated  Sup  flies  of  Soulli  East  Center  add 
Winthroj)  Bailey,  S.S.,  Dec.  i8s3-June  28,  1854. 

Page  109,  to  list  of  Ordained  add  James  R.  Daven])ort,  Oct.  13,  1S36  ;  Alex- 
ander  Leadbetter,  January  13,  1837;   Robert  W.  Orr,  Nov.  22,   1837;  Edward 
D.  Bryan,  Oct.  9,  1838;   Henry  G.  Livingston,  Aug.  20,  1845. 
Page  119,  line  8,  for  of  read  embracing. 

"      131,    "  21, /<?r  332-3 /Y^i-r/ 382-3. 

"      144,    "  24,/(7;- Aug.  12,  1857,  ri'rtrt' Aug.  2,  1857. 

"       "     next  to  last  \\\\c,for  Geo.  T.  Goodhue  read  Geo.  F.  Goodhue. 

"      145,  line  y,for  Dec.  13,  1869,  read  Dec.  26,  1869. 

"      146,    "     10, /'^'r  July  I,  i86f,  ;v(C(/ January  I,  1S61. 


CORRIGENDA.  229 

Pape  146,  line  \^,for  Geo.  T.  Goodhue  read  George  F.  Goodhue. 
"       "      "     'ififfor  Dec.  13,  1869,  /var/Dec.  26,  1869. 
"      147,  to  list  of  Ordained  add  Roswell  D.  Smith,  July  26,  1864. 
"      1 50,  line  ^S,/or  T.  read  F. 
"      160,    "     2^,  for  last  read  least. 
"      166,    "     25, yi^r  July  16 /V(7i/ January  16. 
"       "      "     27, y^'r  Tracey  rt'flt/ Tracy. 

"      167,    "       9,  after  Charles  E.  Lord  insert  S.S.,  Hug.  Mem'l. 
"        "       "     i\,for  1878  read  1887. 
•'       "     last  line,ybr  Cleveland  read  Cleaveland. 
"       "     foot  note,  before  Dismissed  insert  t. 
"      168,  line  '^,for  Murdock  read  Murdoch. 
"        "       "     \-],for  1856  read  1886. 

"        "       "     37,  after  June  21,  1887  /wjt'r/ *Sept.  26,  18S9. 
"      169,    "     31  for  Roderic  read  Roderick. 
"       "     ne.xt  to  last  line,y<';'  Cleveland  read  Cleaveland. 
"     170,  line  2j,for  Cleveland  read  Cleaveland. 

"      171,   in   list  of  Pastors  and  Stated  Sn/'/Hes  of  Darien  insert  below 
Edwards  P.  Cleaveland,  Edward  T.  Hromfield,  S.  S.,  1882-1S86. 
Page  171,  next  to  last  line,  after  June,  1888,  insert  May  29,  1889. 
"      173,   in  list  of  Pastors  and  Stated  Sn//>lies  of  Peekskill,   id,  insert 
Julius  L.  Danner,  S.S.,  18S0-1881. 

Page  iTl,for  Damarest  read  Deinarcst. 
"        "    for  David  Murdock  read  David  Murdocii. 
"      ij^ffor  Anthony  B.  Macoubrcy  read  Anthony  R. 
"       175,  line  19,  for  Feb.  i,  18S9,  read  Feb.  3,  1889. 
"       "    for  Matthew  T.  Adams  read  Matthew  T.  Adam. 
"       "     in  list  of  Pastors  and  Stated  Stiff  lies  of  West  Farms  insert  Wil- 
liam Gray,  S.S.,  1835-6. 

Page  175,  line  W,for  Apr.  22,  1874,  read  May  13,  1874. 
"      176,    "     18, /cJr  Jan.  187S,  ;v(?(/ Jan.  1S7 5. 
"      189,    "      22,  after  New  York  insert  and  New  England. 


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